


Sami Zayn vs. The World

by MissKittyFantastico



Category: World Wrestling Entertainment
Genre: Almost Sex, Anal Fingering, Anal Sex, Bad Dreams, Bad Exes, Beach Trip, Beach Volleyball, Best Friend Cuddling, Birthday Weekend, Blow Jobs, Boss Fights, Break Up, Cats, Day Off, Developing Relationship, Doggy Style, Drunken Kissing, Enthusiastic Consent, Eventual Happy Ending, Everything else is banter and angst and boss battles, F/F, F/M, First Date, First Time, Halloween Costumes, Insecurity, M/M, Makeouts, Making up and making out, Mind Control, Moving Away, Moving In Together, Moving Out, Multi, Old Flames Returning, Past Abuse, Past Cheating, Past Relationship(s), Polyamorous Characters, Premature Ejaculation, Remember: it's like a video game, Scott Pilgrim - Freeform, Scott Pilgrim AU, Smut is in Chapter 7 and the end of Chapter 9, Subspace Sword Fights, Sympathetic Exes, Three Small Words, Toronto, Unrequited Crush, Valentine's Day, Wilderness Sabbatical, awkward makeouts, halloween party, implied past Sami/Kevin, more characters and relationships on the way, past Roman/Tyler, past Sami/Cesaro, smut in later chapters, sword fight
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-18
Updated: 2016-12-06
Packaged: 2018-06-02 23:39:40
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 20
Words: 85,142
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6587854
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MissKittyFantastico/pseuds/MissKittyFantastico
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Once upon a time in Toronto, Canada, Sami Zayn meets the man of his dreams. Literally! However, Finn Bálor has a whole lot of baggage in the form of seven evil exes. Can Sami defeat them? Can he get past his own issues to find love again? Will his band ever get a record deal or get any good? Either way, Sami Zayn's precious little life is never going to be the same again.</p><p>(This is a Scott Pilgrim AU if that wasn't obvious.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Once Upon A Time...

**Author's Note:**

> Because I get easily bored at work and Metric's 'Black Sheep' comes up on the playlist all the time, I started casting out a Scott Pilgrim AU with Sami and Finn as Scott and Ramona at the center. Then I wondered what would happen if you took out the fake high school girlfriend plot point, but still made it about two messed up people trying to navigate a relationship with boss battles. Then I wrote a whole chapter before I knew it and was obsessed with writing Tyler Breeze.
> 
> This is my first ongoing fic in a really long time, so sorry if there's any mistakes with how to tag it. Also, it's going to borrow from both the movie and the comic series.
> 
> Thank you to iggypup87 for encouraging this and to Missy for beta-ing!
> 
> AUTHOR'S NOTE (1/23/17): Hi guys, this is Ashley way after the fact. I have not touched my AO3 account in a while, but I wanted to leave a note here. As you may notice by the tags, this fic includes Enzo Amore as a character. Granted, he is a minor character in the grand scheme of this fic, but I wanted to write a disclaimer that this was written prior to the knowledge of the sexual assault allegations that lead to his release from WWE. I may edit/rewrite this particular fic to include different characters at a later date, but I have not supported Enzo for several months now and do not condone his actions.

Once upon a time, in the mysterious land of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, Sami Zayn was going to band practice.

He usually went to band practice on Monday nights, walking the twenty minutes from one end of Wychwood to the other, lugging his bass with him and bundled in as many layers of clothing as he could manage.

Tonight was supposed to be different. He was supposed to have a date.

She had been a nice girl too. Emma was her name. She was from Australia and was spending a few months in Toronto. He had met her waiting on the bus, struck up a nice conversation about punk rock and ska. His bandmates were about to ring wedding bells when he mentioned how he had met her. Sami wasn't thinking that far ahead, but he was at least hopeful his string of bad luck with dates was finally coming to an end.

Things are never that easy for Sami Zayn though.

“I’m sorry, Sami,” she said sympathetically on the phone an hour before. “But I don’t think it’s going to work. I mean, you’re really sweet, but I’m not going to be here for long… Best not to get too attached to anything, y’know?”

Sami flashed back to what had brought him to Toronto in the first place, taking him from his beloved home of Montreal to a new city a whole province away. He flinched, suddenly upset he even let himself get romantically hopeful for a second. “Yeah, no, I get it.”

“No hard feelings, though?”

“Yeah, no hard feelings.”

So Sami changed out of his date clothes into a pair of jeans and a band shirt, bundled up, and dragged himself to band practice instead.

Needless to say, the band was surprised when he walked in the door.

“Sami,” Dean exclaimed with confusion from behind the drumset, “Why are you even here?”

“Yeah, didn’t you have a hot date tonight,” Seth Rollins asked, guitar pick in between his teeth as he tuned his guitar. “What? With Emily?”

“Emma,” Sami muttered, shutting the door behind him and unwrapping his scarf. “But she cancelled. Doesn’t want to get too attached to anything before she leaves Toronto.”

A sympathetic hiss came behind him and he looked over to see Roman sitting on the couch, tying his long black hair into a sloppy bun before he stood up and placed a hand on Sami’s shoulder. “Sorry about that, brother.”

“Eh, women, who needs ‘em,” Dean said with a shrug as he impatiently tapped his foot on the bass drum pedal, resulting in a low and soft thrumming noise that quickly filled the living room. “You got us. We may not put out, but at least we’re loyal.”  


Seth just rolled his eyes. “Dean, we talked about this…”

Sami couldn’t help but chuckle at that as he opened up his bass case. “No, it’s okay. I’ll be fine. There’s always tomorrow, right?”

“Are you sure,” Seth asked, looking at his bandmate with concern. “You’ve said that about the last five failed dates.”

“I’m fine, I promise,” Sami said, throwing his bass on over his shoulder and plugging in. “If I wasn’t, I wouldn’t have walked through the snow to get here.”

Seth looked over at Roman, who just sighed and shrugged. Sami knew that look from him meant ‘hey, don’t ask me about it,’ but he didn’t mention that fact. Seth just rolled his eyes again. “Fine, if you say so. Count us in, De-“

“WE ARE THE SHIELD AND WE’RE HERE TO KICK YOUR TEETH IN! ONE, TWO, THREE, FOUR!”

Before Seth could say a word, Sami began strumming out the bass notes of a song unofficially titled ‘Launchpad McQuack,’ losing himself in the music as Seth and Roman joined in on guitar, Seth’s vocals matching their frantic pace. Sure, it wasn’t a date, but it was something he could depend on.

Who needed partnership, anyway?

———

Sami Zayn was 31 years old and what some people would consider awesome. He had lived in Toronto for five years after an incident he didn’t like to talk about. He was in a band called The Shield with three Americans who had moved to Toronto for various other reasons. Seth Rollins was 29, the lead singer, songwriter, and talent of the band, and was usually referred to by his first and last name together. Roman Reigns was 30, quiet and strong, and one hell of a rhythm guitarist. Finally, there was Dean Ambrose, 30 and hating most everyone and everything, which he would take out on the drums instead of actual human society.

It wasn’t a bad life, being in a terrible band. It certainly made Sami happy, especially as he recovered from the shitshow his life had become before he moved to Toronto.

Still, it felt like there was something missing sometimes, but Sami didn’t know if he was ready for that yet. 

Or ever again.

———

Sami was barely in the door of the tiny basement apartment when he heard “Got stood up again, huh?”

He looked over to see his roommate Bayley, 26 and gay as the day is long, sitting on her recliner, reading something on her iPad. “How did you guess,” he asked, scraping his feet on the mat inside the door as he closed it.

“Your date clothes were on the mattress and your bass wasn’t blocking the path to the bathroom,” she said, not even looking up at him.

“Lucky guess,” Sami smirked as he began to take his coat off.

Bayley looked up from her iPad, eyes filled with concern instead of her usual playfulness. “Are you okay?”

“Yep,” Sami said, kicking off his boots.

“You sure?”

“Yep.” The bass guitar case dropped in front of the bathroom door as he walked into the apartment on socked feet.

“Do you need alone time?”

“Do you see another mattress in here?”

Bayley looked around the apartment, decorated mostly with her things since she paid for most of the place. “You got a point there,” she said as she watched Sami land face first in their shared bed. “You want me to make turkey bacon as consolation?”

“Please?”

“You got it, love,” she said, quickly scrambling out of her chair and into the kitchen.

———

Sami often dreamt of deserts.

Not the one he would see whenever he would go to visit his family in Syria, but a fake one. One that looked like something from a video game, with one lonely cactus somewhere in the distance.

Sami hated this desert, because it meant one thing.

“God, I’m so alone…”

“You’re not alone.”

Sami looked up from his place on his knees in this dream desert to see a figure ride by on a bike. A man, for certain, judging by his look and voice. A black leather jacket, a pair of silver goggles and a bandana covered his face, protecting him from the sand he kicked up. Sami looked at him perplexed. “Excuse me?”

“You're just having a dream,” the figure shouted in an Irish brogue as he pedaled on by. Was he even pedaling?

As he rode by, kicking up more dust behind him, Sami decided he would at least go for broke in his dream.

“Does that mean we can make out then?!”

———

Before he could even get a response from his dream Irish mystery man, Sami woke with a start, gasping for air. “Oh my god…”

With that, Bayley woke up suddenly after him, her hair an absolute mess. “I’m up, what’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” Sami gasped, rubbing his hands over his face. “I just… had a dream.”

“I don’t care,” grumbled a sleepy voice between the two of them. Sami looked down to see a shock of pink hair curled up against Bayley, who just rolled her eyes. Sasha Banks. 24 and caustic. Bayley’s girlfriend.

“Ignore Sasha,” Bayley yawned. “She knows not of what she speaks.”

“I just don’t want to hear about another Kevin dream,” Sasha mumbled without opening her eyes, curling closer to Bayley.

Bayley frantically shushed her. “We don’t speak that name here, you know this.”

“No no,” Sami said, standing up in a daze. “This was someone new entirely. Someone Irish.”

“Lucky us,” Sasha mumbled. Bayley reprimanded her again, but Sami was long gone, staring out the tiny window of their apartment as he watched a bicyclist go by in the snow at an unnatural pace. 

———

Sami had to get out out his own head for a bit, so he decided to take a walk down to the Wychwood library. It was a bit of a walk, but he didn't mind it. The day was nice despite the weather and he always liked stopping at the Second Cup his friends Enzo (29, loudmouthed and short) and Cass (29, soft-spoken and tall) worked at on the way. It was a certain upside to being “between jobs.”

“Yo Zayn, I hear you got stood up last night,” Enzo said as he passed Sami his small Caramel Coretto.

“What?! I mean, yeah, but who told you?”

“Who tells us everything about your life,” asked Cass, not even looking up from the register as he took an order from a tiny little hipster who was gawking at his height.

At that point, Sami didn’t even know why he asked. “Bayley, that gossip.”

“Hey man, we’re just worried about you,” Enzo said as he went back to prepping drinks. “Especially with jerk bag who will not be named coming back into town with his terrible band soon.”

“They’re not terrible,” Sami muttered as he slid a cardboard sleeve over the cup.

“Bro, I’m trying to have solidarity with you.”

“I know, and I appreciate it. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m venturing back out since it’s likely you already know everything about how my night went.”

He raised his cup to his two friends as he walked out, adjusting his earmuffs and his flat cap with his free hand as he trudged the few more minutes to the library, taking sips of his coffee along the way.

The library itself was peaceful, even if it did kind of remind him of being a little kid sometimes. Scraping off his boots, Sami set up the stairs, walking through the aisles of books for a while and eventually settling on books in French to lose his thoughts in.

Maybe he could stay here, in a quiet space surrounded by books and the soft whirring and clicking of computers. Nothing against Bayley, but there was a certain kind of chaos to their home that could leave the edges of his mind buzzing.

Still, he was fairly certain the people working in the library would not be fond of him living there. Plus, he couldn’t blast ska while making dinner with Bayley. Or any kind of music for that matter.

“Home wins this round,” he thought as he gathered up his books and headed back for the stairs. He polished off his coffee and tossed it into a trashcan near the stairs.

As he started to head down though, he froze in his tracks, looking at the delivery boy handing a clipboard to the librarian. He was wearing a black beanie, black leather jacket, silver goggles and a black bandana tied around his neck instead of a traditional scarf. As he looked up at Sami with blue eyes and gave him a friendly smile, Sami could practically hear his brain and his heart come to a grinding halt. Could it be…

Suddenly, the librarian handed the delivery boy the clipboard back and the delivery boy said a friendly thanks with a smile and an Irish accent. As he stashed the clipboard back in his messenger bag, he looked back up at Sami with one more smile as he walked out of the library and back into the snow.

A very loud “CLUNK-CLA-CLUNK” broke the silence as the two books Sami had in hand fell out of it and onto the library stairs. Sami just continued to stare at the door in shock, not even registering that he was the one who caused all the noise. Perhaps because the screaming in his head and the thumping of his heart was much louder as everything came to a start again.

———  


“Ughhhhhh… why are we doing this?”

Sami jumped off the steps of the streetcar with a soft crunch into the snow as he followed behind Roman, taking up the rear as he and his bandmates walked into Yorkville.

“Because Tyler Breeze may be the biggest douche in Toronto currently, but he apparently knows people according to Seth Rollins,” Dean said curtly.

“I’m just thinking it wouldn’t hurt to rub some elbows,” Seth shrugged. “If we made some connections and inroads to a record deal, it would make hanging out at Tyler’s place for a few hours worth it. Plus, we’ll probably barely see him.”

Dean chuckled as he looked over his shoulder. “Awh, I bet that makes you sad, Roman.”

Roman just clicked his tongue and shook his head. “Man, Tyler and I broke up ages ago. I ain’t dwelling on that anymore. Plus, his new boyfriend is way cooler than he is. Damn shame Xavier’s gotta be dating the biggest narcissist in this hemisphere.”

The ribbing between Dean and Roman continued for another block, but Sami could barely hear it behind his own thoughts. He was still thinking about the delivery boy from the library and the man from his dream. They had to be the same person, right? It wasn’t just some sort of odd coincidence? Sami’s brain was telling him that wasn’t sensible, but the heart was saying otherwise. For better or worse, that’s usually what Sami went on.

Still, was he ever going to see him again?

“We’re here!”

Sami snapped out of his thoughts and looked up at the building, which was easily the fanciest looking apartment complex Sami had ever seen. As they walked into the lobby, he could practically feel the daggers of disdain the doorman was staring into them, but Roman just shot him a look that kept him from opening his mouth. Quickly, the four of them piled into an elevator and began stripping off their outer layers. “He’s on the top floor penthouse,” Seth muttered as he struggled with his scarf. “It’s one of his ‘seasonal residences.’”

“Joy,” Dean groaned, rolling his eyes. “Can’t wait to hear about that all night.”

“Hey, try being a little less of your usual dick self while we’re in there, okay?”

“I make no promises.”

As the doors opened, the four of them were greeted with electronic pop music and a bunch of pretty hipster types milling about under portraits of Tyler, 28 and self-obsessed, in various poses. Basically, everything Sami expected from a Tyler Breeze party.

They were barely out of the elevator when a voice greeted them with “Seth Rollins! Lovely to see you, dearest!” The four of them looked over to see Tyler, preening around in iridescent green leather pants, no shirt and his hair down, coming over to greet them. He started with Seth, giving him a kiss on each cheek. Seth followed suit, even though it clearly made him uncomfortable. Tyler then turned to Roman, a genuine smile crossing his face. “And Roman, always a pleasure to see you.”

For the first time in years, Sami watched as Tyler and Roman embraced in a warm hug before Tyler gave him the customary cheek kisses. Sami briefly wondered what it was like not to have a terrible relationship with an ex, but couldn’t dwell on it too long before Tyler turned and looked at him and Dean. “And I see you brought the uggos as usual.”

Sami just gave Tyler a smile to cut any sarcastic remarks Dean had off at the pass. “Good to see you too, Tyler. How’s business?”

“Gorgeous as usual, but not like you would know,” Tyler said with his signature smirk. “I even signed a lucrative deal with Helmsley Enterprises, hence the soiree. All of you, make yourselves at home, but not _too_ much.”

He gave Dean a look with that last statement and Dean just gave him his own look, wild-eyed and mischievous. “Don’t worry, I won’t fuck up your place _too_ much, Breeze.”

Tyler just groaned. “I will see you boys around the party. I have _other_ guests to attend to. Please, leave your coats with Aimée.”

With that, Tyler was gone as fast as he arrived and a maid in a green outfit similar to his pants came up behind him to take their coats. Sami grinned at his bandmates. “Well, that went okay.”

Roman just laughed as he handed the coat to the maid and walked into the party. Sami made sure to look at her and tell her _merci_ before he joined them, grabbing a Coke from the bar before he truly made his way into the party.

Sami often tended to be more of a sit back and watch kind of guy at parties. Not a grumbling wallflower the way Dean could be or just the sit silently on the couch type Roman was some of the time, but the kind who would sit on the edges of things, watching people talk and occasionally making his way into conversations. It’s how he met most of his friends. It’s how he met…

He shook off that thought. No, now was not the night for ex thoughts.

He took a sip of his soda and looked around the party for a second. Most of these people he didn’t know, just hipsters and fashion types looking for their few seconds of fame. He saw a few faces here and there he recognized from shows or other parties, but no real friends to latch onto besides his bandmates.

“Hey Sami!”

He turned to see Xavier Woods, 29 and knows everyone, all smiles and excitement. Sami couldn’t help but smile at him. “Hey Xavier!”

The two hugged each other before Xavier pulled back to look at Sami. “How are you? I haven’t seen you since, what? The Social Outcasts show at the Rockit?”

Sami nodded, trying his best not to think about the night he and his band nearly got into a fight in the venue itself. Well, it was mostly Dean nearly got in a fight. “Yeah. And I’ve been well. Between jobs right now unfortunately. What about you though? When did you start dating Breeze?”

“Oh, probably a month after that,” Xavier said with a shrug. “And before you say it, yes, I know it’s weird, but he’s actually pretty great under all of…”

“This?”

Sami gestured to the portraits and Xavier shrugged again. “Ty is very serious about his art, what can I say?”

“Fair enough,” Sami said, holding his hands up.

“How’s dating going for you though? I hear through the grapevine your last one ended before it started.”

Sami blinked and sighed. “By grapevine, do you mean Bayley?”

“I mean Sasha by way of Bayley, so yes, there is a vine involved.”

Sami couldn’t help but chuckle at that. “I suppose you’re right. I swear, between those two, all of Toronto is going to know my business.”

“Not all of Toronto. More like half, tops.”

Sami laughed again before a thought entered his head. It might have been weird, but it never hurt to try. “Hey Woods, you know everyone right?”

“I mean, yeah, pretty much,” he said with a shrug like it was an understatement. “What do need?”

“Well, I’ve been having weirdly realistic dreams lately about a person and I feel like you might be able to help me out.”

Xavier held his arms out, trying to look as majestic as possible. “Do your worst, Zayn.”

“Do you know a guy… Irish, probably a bike messenger. Blue eyes… about my height… nice smile?”

“Oh, you mean Finn Bálor,” Xavier said, acting like Sami had given him the most detailed description in the entire universe. “Yeah, he’s new in town. He’s a delivery guy for Amazon CA, but he used to work for Helmsley, it sounded like. Probably a model himself from the way he looks, but it’s impossible to get a story out of that guy. In fact, he’s here tonight…”

“WHAT?!”

Before Xavier could spout off more facts about the delivery boy named Finn, Sami was off like a shot, dropping his drink in the meantime. Quickly, he scanned the room for the literal man of his dreams, meeting fleeting eyes with several strangers and even outright ignoring Seth’s pleas to talk to some label guy with him at one point.

Finally, he saw him.

On a wall close to one of the windows, he stood, wearing a plain black shirt, a hoodie, and jeans, sipping from a glass as he watched the people outside. Sami wasn’t sure if it was the light from the heated balcony or his own imagination, but this guy seemed to glow. No one had glowed for Sami. Not in a long time.

Sami felt crazy for acting like this. If he turned back now, he could save face and it would all be okay.

But that would be too easy and too expected of him.

Instead, Sami took a deep breath and straightened out his posture. Slowly, he walked over to where Finn was, taking a spot on the wall next to him and trying to look as inconspicuous as possible. With a tilt of his head in an attempt to be cool, he uttered, “Hey.”

Finn looked over briefly and nodded before looking back out the window. “How’s it goin’?”

Sami started having a million racing thoughts, at least 500,000 of them about his accent. The other 500,000 were trying to figure out what to say next. Instead, he settled for a casual as possible “Nothing much. You?”

Without looking at him, Finn just shrugged. “Can’t complain.”

Sami huffed internally, not really certain how to get this guy to talk to him more. He looked him over again for a second before settling his eyes on his shoes, a pair of boots decorated with what looked like teeth like designs in the stitching. “Nice boots.”

Finn looked over at Sami skeptically for a second before looking at his boots. “Thanks. Got them the last time I went home.” He then looked back at Sami, his look even more skeptical. “Hey, didn’t I see you at Wychwood Library today?”

Sami froze, uncertain of what to do next in this situation. Logically, he should have just answered yes and went from there.

Instead…

“I, uh… have to… go…”

Before either of them could say anything else, Sami practically dashed away from Finn, darting his way through the crowd and as far away from him as possible. Eventually, Sami found himself on the top level of the penthouse, looking over the crowd and watching Finn from a distance for about an hour. Occasionally, Finn would look up, but Sami would duck out of sight until he looked away. Sami wasn’t sure how effective that was, but it was worth a shot to not die of embarrassment for the third time today.

Finally, as Sami watched Finn grab his things from Aimée, including his bike, and then proceed to the elevator, Sami zipped back downstairs. Not to chase Finn into the elevator, but rather to find Xavier again. This time, he found him talking to Seth, arm around Tyler’s waist. Seth looked at Sami with annoyance as he approached. “Sami, where the hell have you been. I had at least two la-“

“Yeah yeah,” Sami sputtered as he pushed Seth over to the side. “Xavier, tell me everything you know about Finn Bálor.”

Xavier raised an eyebrow at Sami, not used to this bout of rudeness from him. “Well, there’s not much too know. He’s Irish, delivers for Amazon, just moved here…”

“Used to be a top boy at Helmsley from what I hear,” Tyler added with a shrug. “But he’s apparently getting out of a bad breakup.”

Sami’s eyes widened at that last statement. “Really now?”

“Ugh, don’t even think about it, uggo,” Tyler said with disgust as he looked at Sami. “I know you think you might be good together with your mutual beards and weird eyes, but that man is way too good and good looking for you under that t-shirt. Don’t you even think of bringing him down to your level with your weird Canadian-ness…”

Seth rejoined the conversation, hand gripped around Sami’s shoulder and his words through clenched teeth. “Sorry about that, guys. As you can tell, my bassist has not gotten laid in a long, _long_ time.”

Sami flinched and immediately entered back into the reality where he let the man of his dreams walk out of the party with only a few sentences exchanged. Tyler just looked Sami up and down disdainfully. “Believe me, I could tell even before the craziness escaped his mouth.”

———

“GUESS WHO’S DRUNK?!”

Sami rubbed his eyes to adjust to the light as Bayley stumbled back into the apartment, turning the lights on on her way in. “I guess Bayley.”

“You guess right,” she giggled as she fell over onto the mattress next to Sami. “And guess who wants to cuddle?”

Sami couldn’t help but grin at that. “Bring it in, _habibti._ ”

Bayley scooted closer to him, throwing her arm around him and snuggling her face into his chest. “So soft…”

Sami chuckled a little before taking a deep breath in to inform Bayley of how his night went. “So, I met this guy…”

“I’m gonna pretend you’re talking about girls, okay?”

“Okay, but it’s literally the guy from my dreams.”

“The girl from my dreams.”

“And the same guy I saw at the library today. His name is Finn, apparently.”

Bayley looked up at Sami with pleading drunk eyes. “Please tell me you made out with him.”

“I did not,” Sami sighed. “Chickened out of a conversation as soon as he recognized me.”

“Saaaaami,” Bayley whined as she buried her head in Sami’s chest again. “This is not how you meet attractive hotties who might help you get over your terrible ex.”

“I know, I know,” Sami said, rubbing his eyes. “But he was so pretty, it was unreal. He might not even be real. Or he is real and I’m not good enough for him.”

“That’s crap and you know it.”

“I mean, maybe.”

“Shhhhh,” Bayley slurred as she put a hand to Sami’s beard. “Kevin was a dirty, dirty liar. You’re good enough. Go get the man of your dreams after I’m done snuggling you.”

“When will that be?”

Before she could answer, Bayley had fallen asleep on Sami’s chest. He smiled at that and held Bayley close, kissing her on the head as he looked up at the ceiling. He closed his eyes, drifting away to sleep on thoughts of how he might just catch Finn if he crossed through his dreams again.


	2. Finn Come Closer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sami goes for broke twice in one day. Meanwhile, Seth Rollins gets a gig.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to everyone who read the first chapter! I got all the story beats and band lineups laid out this week, so this might actually be turning into a fic. Don't worry, there will be some evil ex action in the next chapter. For now, enjoy some first date cuteness and see if you can catch a reference to a song from the actual Scott Pilgrim vs. The World soundtrack.
> 
> Thanks again to Missy and iggypup87 for the beta!

Bayley groaned as she sat up in bed, feeling and looking as if she’d been hit by a bus. “Oh god, how much did I drink last night?”

“I don’t know, I wasn’t there.”

She looked over to see Sami sitting on the floor across from the bed, typing away on his laptop. “Morning, sunshine,” she yawned. “Whatcha up to?”

“I don’t know… things… Hey, do you mind if I use your Amazon Prime account?”

“No… what fo-“

“Thanks! Just buying some CDs… Some cool, not awkward CDs.”

Bayley squinted at Sami. “Is this about that dream delivery boy you were telling me about?”

“What? Finn? No. Not at all.”

Sami looked up at Bayley, who had a shit-eating grin on her face. With a blush, he looked back down at his computer. “Did I say Finn? I meant… uh… Seth… Seth Rollins wants music recommendations. Yep.”

“Uh huh,” Bayley said as she crawled off the mattress and slowly stood up as she made her way to the kitchen. As she pulled a glass down from the cabinet, she looked over to see that Sami had abandoned his computer and was now staring at the door intently, waiting for something. “It’s Sunday, Sami,” she yawned as she turned on the faucet and filed the glass with water. “Two day delivery won’t be here until Tuesday.”

With a small whine, Sami collapsed over onto his side, his legs still in a crossed position. Bayley just took a sip of her water. “I know, buddy. I know.”

———

“So the good news is that I got us a gig.”

“That’s usually bad news for everyone else, Seth Rollins,” Dean replied, voice flat with sarcasm.

Seth shot him a look for a few seconds before chucking a guitar pick at his head. As Dean muttered a small “ow” and rubbed at his forehead, Seth looked back at Sami and Roman sitting on the couch. “There is bad news though. Well, two bits of it.”

“Lay it on,” Roman sighed.

“The first is that it’s at the Rockit.”

The room broke out into a groan at the news. “Seriously,” Roman inquired. “Even after that bullshit The Social Outcasts pulled with the tab?”

“Yeah, I hoped throwing Curtis through a bathroom stall would have gotten us banned for life and I would never have to see that dump heap again,” Dean added, all serious this time.

“Well, we’re not playing with the Outcasts this time,” interrupted Seth. “However, we are playing with Charlotte and the Boys.”

Another groan. “Oh god, really,” Dean asked. “There aren’t even any boys in her band.”

“Plus, how long until her dad-ager tries to clear us off the bill so she can play for six hours,” Roman added.

“Actually, heard she dropped his ass recently,” Seth added with a smirk. “Her and the girls are trying to do it all on their own and are getting experimental with it. Which means we might look good by comparison.”

With that, Dean started gesturing boldly with his drumsticks. “And he finally admits that we suck!”

“Shut up, Dean.”

With a laugh, Dean looked over at Sami. “What say you, Zayn? You been awfully quiet over there.”

Sami looked over at Dean, dragging himself from his thoughts about how soon Finn might arrive at his place and what he could even possibly say to him to make himself look like less of an absolute dork. He had really only barely registered what Seth had said besides ‘gig,’ ‘Rockit’ and ‘Charlotte and the Boys.’ “Yeah, I’m fine with it. It’s not like I got anything else going on this week.”

Dean looked at Sami skeptically for a second, but Seth was already moving onto the next part of the conversation. “Sweet then. It’s on Thursday night. Load in is at seven. Sound check at eight. Doors at nine. Charlotte goes on at 9:30. Please tell everyone because I would like to take home more than seven dollars for all of us this time.”

“Hey,” Dean exclaimed, “that seven dollars paid for most of a chorizo and potato pizza at Pizza Pizza. Don’t hate.”

As Dean and Seth continued to bicker, Sami retreated back into his thoughts, wondering just how many hours it was until it was Tuesday morning.

———

Sami had gotten so used to his desert dream that he had nearly forgotten what dreaming of home was like.

This time, he was dreaming of walking along the St. Lawrence River. He was just in his pajamas, but he didn’t feel cold. Even though it was the middle of the day and no one was out, Sami felt good in his dreams for once.

Then, out of the corner of his eye, he saw another figure come up behind him. One on a bike pedaling through the snow at an unnatural speed. Silver goggles and black bandana. It was him. Finn.

“HEY!”

Finn didn’t turn at Sami’s shout, but Sami still started chasing after him all the same as he biked up the street for another block or so before making a sharp right turn down an alley. Sami practically slid as he followed Finn’s turn, looking down the alley to see him getting off his bike in front of a door.

His front door to be precise.

Once again, Sami shouted.

———

Sami jolted up from his dead sleep at the sound of his voice shouting “HEY!” Quickly, he scrambled his way to his feet and rushed over to open the front door before the man standing on the other side of it could even ring the doorbell.

As the chime of the door bell echoed through the empty apartment, Sami watched as the man in front of him slowly pulled up his goggles and pulled his bandana down. He felt the butterflies in his stomach do somersaults as he confirmed that Finn was indeed the one he was seeing in his dreams. Finn looked at him kind of quizzically as he looked down at the package and clipboard he held in his hands. “Uhh… Sami Zayn?”

“Yeah, that’s me,” Sami said, leaning in the doorway in his ratty old Rancid shirt and pajama pants, trying desperately to look cool. “What’s up?”

Finn just raised an eyebrow at him before laughing kind of awkwardly and looking back down at the clipboard with a slight smile on his face. “I… I just need you to sign for this, man.”

“Yeah, but then you have to leave.”

“Part of the job.”

“Then I have to go back to only seeing you in my dreams, and that’s way less fun than it sounds.”

Finn’s eyes went wide at that statement, a look of realization coming across his face. “Ohhhh… that’s where I know you. That Subspace highway runs through your head!”

It was Sami’s turn to be confused. “The what now?”

“That must be why it’s so empty,” Finn muttered. “No one up here in Canada knows about it.”

Sami rubbed his eyes and then started scratching his neck nervously. “Look… Finn…”

Finn looked back up at Sami, eyebrow raised. “How do you know my name?”

Sami froze in the doorway, his brain coming to a grinding halt for the second time in a week as he stared at the waiting Finn. His first instinct was to do exactly what he did at the party, but this wasn’t a big penthouse to hide in. It was a tiny ass apartment he shared with his best friend. Plus, it would be a dick move to do to someone on the clock. Instead, all he managed was to let out a low, “Uhhhhhhhhh… lucky guess?”

Finn just rolled his eyes as he gestured the clipboard to Sami. “You gonna sign now?”

Sami sighed as he took it from Finn. “I’ve really failed at looking cool, huh?”

Finn smirked as he moved the package back and forth between his hands. “I mean, a little, but I’ve encountered way worse.”

Sami let out a weak laugh as he looked down at the clipboard. He knew he had to sign it so this lovely man could get on with his day, but he didn’t want him to go back to only passing through the whatever highway was in his head. However, he also couldn’t afford to keep ordering CDs off of Amazon just to have him show up at his house. 

That’s when a thought went through his head. “Well, what if I make it up to you?”

“How so,” said Finn, placing his free hand on the doorway and leaning the same direction as Sami. Sami tried his best not to get distracted by that.

“Well, what if I take you on a date? Tonight.”

“Like dinner and a movie,” Finn asked, suddenly looking a bit uneasy. “I don’t know if I’m feeling that.”

“No no,” Sami said, shaking his head and gesturing negatively with his arms. “I can’t even afford that, but something simple. Like a walk around Hillcrest Park.”

“Just a walk around the park?”

“You can leave at any time if you don’t like it.”

Finn’s face softened and a small smile crossed his face. “If I say yes, will you finally sign for the package so I won’t be late for our date?”

Without second thought, Sami quickly scribbled his signature on the page and handed the clipboard back to Finn. “So… eight o’clock?”

“Sounds perfect, Sami Zayn,” Finn said, his smile growing as he exchanged the clipboard for the package. “I’ll see you then.”

As Finn stashed his clipboard back in his messenger bag and prepared his bike, Sami watched him with a huge smile on his face as he hugged the package of CDs close to him. “See you then, Finn.”

“And for what it’s worth,” Finn said as he started to roll his bike back towards the street. “I would have totally loved to talk to you at Tyler’s party.”

As Sami’s jaw dropped, Finn giggled as he hopped onto his bike and pedaled away down the street, a cloud of snow kicking up behind him. When he disappeared from sight, Sami let out a dreamy sigh, but then quickly shut himself back inside as soon as he realized how cold his toes were.

———

Sami wasn’t aiming to run late on his date, but Bayley and Sasha had to run interference. Specifically in the form of trying to steal his flatcap.

“C’mon guys, it’s cold and I’m literally walking in the park for this date.”

“Uh uh. No,” Sasha had insisted as she frisbeed the hat back to Bayley in the kitchen. “No grandpa hat.”

“I’m with Sasha on this,” Bayley said as she caught it and stashed it on top of the fridge. “That’s a third date reveal at best. Give yourself a chance before letting your dream boy know you’re terrible taste in hats.”

“Bayley, you know that I can reach the top of the fridge, right?”

The three of them went back and forth on the subject for a few minutes, but Sami was cut off by the alarm on his phone telling him he had five minutes until his date with Finn. With a string of amalgamated Arabic-French curses, Sami rushed out the door with no hat and no earmuffs. As he speed walked down the street and popped the hood of his coat over his head, he heard Bayley shout, “Good luck, Sami! And remember to practice safe sex if you do the do!”

Sami blushed and walked faster. He hoped that maybe if he was lucky, Finn was one of those types who was always 20 minutes late and Sami could save face for the first time today. However, as he walked up the steps towards the playground of Hillcrest Park and saw a figure at the top of the steps with his hands stuffed in the pockets of his leather jacket and a messenger bag slung over his shoulder, he knew that wasn’t going to be the case. “Oh wow, you’re here.”

Finn turned and looked at Sami with confusion. “Of course I’m here. I’m waiting on you, actually.”

“Sorry,” Sami said, suddenly feeling even more embarrassed as he lowered his hood. “Roommate and her girlfriend decided to play keep away with the hat I wanted to wear, so that’s why I’m late. And I’m also used to people not showing up for dates with me at all, so that’s why I’m rude.”

Finn cracked a smile as he started walking into the park proper. “You’re so Canadian.”

“Is that a bad thing?”

“No, no,” he said, looking back at Sami. “It’s actually really cute.”

Sami blushed again. He was resisting the urge to pull his hood back up to hide. “Yeah… well… you’re cute.”

Finn laughed at that and seemed to blush as well. As Sami joined him by his side as they started walking the snow covered paths of the playground, he looked over at him. “So you said you had a roommate? I thought I only saw one mattress in your apartment.”

“I mean, you did,” Sami admitted, scratching the back of his neck nervously. “We only have one that we share because we’re broke. But we’re not sleeping together. I mean, we do sleep together, but like platonically. Sometimes her girlfriend is there too. But again, platonic. Like they’re poly, but not into men? Or maybe Sasha is into guys sometimes, but Bayley definitely isn’t…”

Finn stopped in his tracks and started laughing. “Oh my god, that is the most complicated way anyone has told me they’re sleeping with a woman.”

“Platonically,” Sami huffed, feeling more embarrassed. “She’s my best friend.”

“It’s all good, Sami Zayn,” Finn said, wiping his eyes down as he finished laughing. “I’m not trying to insult you. This is actually one of the better openings I’ve had on a first date.”

That made Sami’s heart skip a beat. “First date, huh?”

“Well, let’s see how it goes before we make plans for the sequel,” Finn smirked.

“Totally understandable,” Sami shrugged, but he still felt pretty good about himself right then. “For now, can I at least take you to the swings, Mr. Bálor?”

“Yes you can, Sami Zayn. Lead the way.”

As Sami gestured to the swings and lead Finn to them, he looked back over at Finn. “I didn’t answer your question earlier today.”

“Which one?”

“How I knew your name,” Sami admitted as they reached the swing set. Quickly, he dusted snow off two of the seats for them. “Xavier told me at the party because he…”

“Knows everyone,” Finn finished as he took the swing Sami offered out to him. “I figured as soon as I put two and two together. I just wanted to see your response.”

“Yeah, I really failed on that one,” Sami muttered as he took a seat on the swing next to Finn.

“Well, I’m still here, aren’t I,” Finn asked, another smile on his face.

Sami looked over and smiled back. He really was beautiful. “I guess you’re right.”

A few seconds of silence passed between them, Sami unsure of what to do next. Should he take Finn’s hand? Start swinging? Talk about… something? Quickly, Sami cleared his throat. “So… um… what brings you to Toronto?”

Finn sighed as he began swinging gently. “That’s a long and complicated story.”

“Yeah, same for me,” Sami sighed, feeling his heart suddenly get a little heavier.

That caused Finn to stop for a second. “Wait, you’re not from here either?”

“No, Montreal,” Sami admitted. “Kind of… ran away after a breakup a few years ago though. Been kind of bouncing around here ever since.”

The corner of Finn’s mouth tugged into a smile. One of commiseration. “Same here.”

The two looked at each other for what felt like an eternity, a comfortable silence growing between them as a new round of snow flurries began to fall from the sky. Finally, Finn broke it by asking, “Do you want to see who can swing the highest?”

It was Sami’s turn to smirk knowingly. “I never thought you’d ask.”

With that, Sami and Finn started swinging on the set. Slowly at first, but building momentum as the metal began to creak. Sami felt the falling snow began to pelt his face with a cold and furious sting, but he didn’t care. This was the lightest his heart had felt in ages.

“I’m getting higher than you,” taunted Finn as he swung forward, reaching the top of an arc before swiftly swinging back.

“No way,” Sami shouted back as he pushed a little bit further to try and beat Finn’s height.

Finn’s laugh echoed through the empty park as he swung a bit higher this time. Sami tried to push forward a bit more, but he couldn’t do it. “Okay, you win, Finn!”

“YES!”

With that, Finn released himself from the swing at the top of the arc. Sami watched from his swing, slowing down slightly as he watched Finn gracefully fly through the air and land in the snow with only a slight lurch forward. He then turned and faced Sami with a huge grin on his face hands in the air in victory. “I win!”

“Lucky!”

In an attempt to keep up, Sami sped the pace of his swing back up for a couple of arcs before releasing himself from the swing in a similar fashion. However, he was not as graceful in sticking the landing as his lurch forward turned into a trip that caused him to fall face first in the snow.

“Oh my god, are you okay?”

The crunching of boots in snow got closer to Sami as he turned over and sat up to see Finn running towards him. Sami mustered up his best smile, but he knew it didn’t really match how he felt. “Yeah… just hurt my pride mostly. I guess I’m not as graceful as you.”

“Please,” Finn said as he held his hand out to Sami. “Grace is relative. I thought you looked pretty cool.”

Sami gave a genuine smile at that as Finn helped him to his feet and helped him dust the snow off his coat. It didn’t really help though because the flurries had turned into full on flakes, and it was coming down faster. “Thanks for that.”

“God, what is this weather,” Finn asked, looking up towards the sky perplexed. “Isn’t it April?”

“Yeah, well, welcome to Canada,” Sami retorted as they started walking down a path out of the park. “Don’t you have weather like this in Ireland?”

“I lived by the sea,” Finn said, “It’s more wet than snowy.”

“Did it get boring by the sea?”

Finn just shot a look to Sami through the growing snowflakes. “I can’t believe you just said that.”

Sami started giggling. “Hey, there was always a chance you wouldn’t get it.”

Finn shook his head and started trudging forward. “Man, this snow is getting unreal.”

“Yeah,” Sami lamented as he pulled his hood up over his head. “Kinda making it hard to keep being out here.”

“Well, let’s get out of here then.”

“Where? My place is like ten minutes walking from here, but that’s walking and Bayley and Sasha are like a fifth date introduction.”

A small snort came from Finn as he fished around in his bag and pulled out his hat and goggles. “No no, we can go to my place. And I got a much quicker way for us to get there.”

Sami stopped and looked at Finn skeptically. “This doesn’t involve going through my head, does it?”

“No,” Finn answered, reaching out for Sami’s hand. “A door. Up ahead.”

Sami’s heart began to race a little as he took Finn’s hand in his. Despite the coldness that the two felt in their skin, Sami felt a little bit warmer as he and Finn trudged through the snow to the edge of the park and out into the street.

Suddenly, that’s when Sami saw it. On the corner of Turner and Hillcrest, there was a door. A white one with a black star as its only decoration. Sami rubbed at his eyes with his free hand. “Uh, has that always been there?”

“Only if you know how to look,” Finn said, lowering his goggles. “Don’t let go, okay?”

“Oh, I’m certainly not planning on it now.”

“Good,” Finn purred as he opened the door. “Let’s go then.”

Before Sami could think, Finn had pulled him through the door into a dark space he couldn’t quite figure out. Part of him felt like he should be falling, screaming the entire way. However, with Finn holding onto his hand for dear life as he lead the way, it felt more like floating.

“We’re almost there,” Finn shouted.

Sami looked up to see a door similar to to the one they entered, getting closer to them by the second. As Finn reached out his hand to touch it, Sami squeezed his eyes closed, expecting the worse.

“Well, we’re here.”

Sami reopened his eyes to see that they were back outside, snow falling down even harder. He heard the sound of a door closing behind them, but when he looked, it was gone. Finn let go of his hand and ran up the steps of a small house. “C’mon!”

As Sami readjusted to the world around him, he followed Finn up the steps, his steps echoing through the street. “You can afford a place in Cabbagetown?”

“Just the upstairs,” Finn answered as he opened the door. “Leave the shoes downstairs though.”

As the door opened, Sami was greeted with light and warmth as he crossed over into the threshold of a renovated foyer. Quickly, he stripped his coat, boots and socks off, looking over at Finn as he did the same. “Well, this turned out to be a disaster.”

“I wouldn’t say so,” Finn mused, ripping off his hat and goggles to stuff them in the pocket of his jacket before hanging them up. “Still easily in the top ten first dates I’ve ever had.”

Sami couldn’t help but give a small satisfied nod at that as he hung his coat up by Finn’s. “What’ll take it to top five?”

“We’ll see where the night goes,” Finn said, winking at Sami. “C’mon. I’ll make you some tea.”

Finn headed up the stairs and Sami followed behind him, suddenly realizing just how cold and wet he actually was. 

As Finn opened the door to his apartment and threw his messenger bag down on the floor, he stretched out his arms and began rolling his neck as he walked towards the tiny kitchen. He pressed a button on an electric tea kettle and yawned. “Any preferences?”

“Uh, what do you have,” Sami asked as he sat down at the kitchen table.

“Let’s see,” Finn mused as he opened a cabinet and looked at what looked like a small horde of tea from where Sami was sitting. “I have green tea, green tea with lemon, decaffeinated green tea, Irish breakfast tea, REAL Irish breakfast tea, chai tea, PG Tips, green tea with lemon, black currant, Earl Grey, Lady Grey, lavender, ginseng, Liver Disaster, Sleepytime, and peppermint candy cane.”

He looked back at Sami, who was wide-eyed with confusion. “Did you make some of those up?”

Finn chuckled a little bit as he pulled a box out of the cabinet. “I’m going with Sleepytime.”

“I’ll do the same,” Sami said, rubbing his arms up and down for warmth. “I doubt you have real chai anyway.”

“Oh, is that how it is,” Finn asked playfully as he pulled two mugs down from one of the cabinets.

“That’s exactly how it is,” Sami retorted with a grin.

The electric kettle switched off as soon as it came to a boil. Sami watched as Finn ripped open the two packets of tea and placed the bags into the mugs. As he poured the water, he looked back at Sami. “You cold still?”

“A little,” Sami answered, rubbing at his forearm. His coat had taken most of the brunt of the snow, but he still felt a bit cold and clammy despite the heat in Finn’s apartment.

“Wait here,” Finn said softly as he put the steeping mugs onto the table. “I’ll go get you a blanket.”

As Finn trodded down the hallway to his room, Sami took a better look around the apartment. It looked like Finn was still in the process of getting moved in, with assorted boxes stacked up around the space. However, he had still taken the time to make it feel homey despite all of that, with comic themed art hanging on the walls and finished Lego sets sitting proudly on shelves.

A shiver went through Sami and he started shaking a little bit. Scooting his chair out, he stood up and started walking down the hallway, following the light towards Finn room. “Hey, did you get lost or so-“

Sami froze as he looked inside Finn’s room, which had a similar vibe to the rest of his apartment with dark painted furniture, boxes that indicated he was still moving in, and a mix of Lego and pop art as decoration. That isn’t really what caught Sami’s attention though. Instead, it was Finn standing by his closet door, taking off his shirt and letting it fall to the floor. Sami felt his breath escape his body as he caught a look at Finn’s back muscles, which seemed to bypass ‘sculpted’ into ‘unreal’ territory. “Fuck…”

Finn looked over his shoulder to see Sami and chuckled. “Hey, I’m changing.”

“Uh… sorry,” Sami mumbled, covering his eyes. “I was just colder than I thought, I guess.”

“Here, let me help with that.”

“With what,” Sami asked as Finn gently removed Sami’s hands from his eyes. Sami felt himself catching his breath again as Finn stood dangerously close to him, his abs and pecs somehow even more unreal than his back muscles. Tyler might have had a point about how nice Finn looked under his shirt. “Oh… Hi.”

“Hi,” Finn whispered as he wrapped his arms around Sami’s neck. “How do you feel now?”

“I mean, I’m getting there.”

For a long second, the two looked each other in the eye, caught up in each other’s breathing. Sami felt like alarms were going off in his head, crossing signals on what to do next. Talk! Run! Stay! Run! Go for broke!

He opted for “go for broke.”

Leaning forward, he pressed his lips against Finn’s. He almost recoiled when he heard Finn take a sharp inhale, but the way Finn leaned into the kiss and clung tighter to Sami just a few seconds later, it made the alarms in his head slowly change into fireworks.

As the two pulled apart with a gasp for air, Sami cast his eyes towards Finn’s bed. “Were you just going to use the blanket off your bed?”

Finn looked over at his bed, not taking his arms away from Sami’s neck. “I mean… I guess.”

“Well maybe,” Sami suggested slowly, not trying to be forceful in the slightest. “We can cut out the middle man and get under it?”

A devious smile crossed Finn’s face as he backed away from Sami and began to unbutton his pants. With a slight shimmy, he slowly slid off his jeans, revealing tight black briefs underneath. More fireworks went off in his head as he looked at the nearly naked Finn standing in front of him, kicking his pants away and pulling the blanket back in the bed. “God, were you a model?”

Finn just laughed as he walked back over to Sami, tugging at the hem of his shirt. “I’ve done a lot of things, Sami Zayn, but that’s not what I want to talk about right now.”

Sami nodded and took a deep breath as he pulled his shirt off over his head. As he reached for the button on his pants, Finn leaned in for another kiss, running his hand over Sami’s chest. “Do you need help with that?”

“If you want,” Sami muttered between kisses. “I’m certainly not looking to stop you.”

A small laugh came from Finn as he reached down between the two of them and slowly unbuttoned and unzipped Sami’s jeans. As Finn hooked his thumbs around the waistband, Sami met his hands there as they pushed them down towards the floor. Sami stepped out and Finn whipped him around, pushing him down onto the mattress. Sami scooted over more towards the middle, grabbing the blanket as Finn crawled over on top of him and throwing it over the two of them. “Any warmer yet,” Finn asked as he kissed Sami again.

“Getting there.”

Sami leaned up and pressed his lips towards Finn’s again, reaching his hands down his back and pulling him down just a bit closer. Finn’s breathing got heavier as he did so, slowly and gently pressing his tongue against Sami’s as their kissing got deeper. At this point, Sami knew he should have been ready to go. Ready to strip down the last layer of clothing between them and figure out just what made this man who was just a figure in his head a week ago tick.

The key word there was “should.”

As Sami broke away from Finn to breathe, he looked him right in his blue eyes, feeling flustered and apologetic. “I… I’m sorry… I just…”

“Not ready,” Finn asked, his voice just as breathy as Sami’s.

“I don’t think so,” Sami admitted, “I mean, I really want to be because wow, you’re a great kisser and all my lizard brain wants right now is you pressed against me forever, but it’s also been a long time.”

“I get it,” Finn said with a slight smile and a gentle kiss on Sami’s lips. “Truth be told, I’m probably not ready either.”

Sami sighed in equal measures relief and sadness. “I guess this means I should leave, huh?”

“No,” Finn insisted, rolling off to the side and snuggling closer to Sami. “I’m not sending you back out in this snowstorm. You stay in my bed tonight and keep warm with me. And the sex is still on the table if you want it.”

Sami smiled as he turned on his side and looked over at Finn. He started gently and idly moving his hand up and down Finn’s side, which caused Finn to shiver slightly under his touch. He made a mental note of that for later. “I mean, I think I needed this. Whatever… this was. Thank you.”

“Always happy to help,” Finn whispered, a smile of his own starting to dance on his face as he reached over and started stroking Sami’s beard. He then leaned over and kissed Sami on forehead, then gently on the lips again.

Sami’s lids began to grow heavy as he looked at Finn with a sleepy smile. “Get the light?"

“You got it.”

Quickly, Finn crawled out of bed and walked over to the light switch on the wall. Sami took the opportunity to admire his body and grace one more time before he went to sleep today. As the room went dark, Sami felt himself settle into the mattress like it was his own. As Finn crawled back in, he held his arms out, which Finn scooted into. “Good night, Sami Zayn.”

“Good night, Finn,” Sami muttered as he held Finn close and settled his forehead onto his neck as he drifted off into dreams with the sound of his breathing close to him. At that moment, he wanted to stay like this forever, but if he only did it for one night, at least it would be one he looked back on fondly as he remembered that he could be okay again.


	3. Love(?) and Rockit

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The gig at the Rockit is here, but it might be more eventful than what Sami was hoping for.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for taking so long on this, but I think it's worth the wait.
> 
> Also, yes, I know the Rockit is no longer open, but for the sake of this AU, it is.
> 
> Thanks to Missy and iggypup87 for beta-ing!

Sami could hear the birds chirping outside, sunlight streaming on his face, and a low volume of hip-hop mixed with running water as he stirred awake. For the first time in what felt like ages, he hadn’t been plagued by weird dreams, so he wasn’t entirely certain if he was actually waking up or if the night before had even happened.

He opened his eyes and looked around the room. Same dark painted furniture. Same pop art. Same Lego sets. Yep, it was all real. As he woke up, his eyes focused in on one particular Lego set, large and brown. “Holy shit, is that the firehouse from _Ghostbusters_?”

A laugh came from the bathroom and Sami turned over to see Finn standing in the doorway with his toothbrush in his mouth. He was shirtless still, but he was wearing jeans. Sami kind of lamented that for a second. “It is, and good morning.”

“You make that yourself?”

“From a kit,” Finn said as he walked back into bathroom to spit into the sink. “But yeah, all of these are mine.”

“Wow, never would have pegged you as a Lego guy.”

“There’s a lot you don’t know about me, Sami,” Finn mused as he splashed water on his face before turning the sink off. “Then again, I don’t know a lot about you either.”

“We could spend time doing that,” Sami suggested as he sat up in bed and looked expectantly at Finn.

Finn just sighed as he walked back into the bedroom and leaned over Sami. “As much as I would love that, I have to get to work.”

He kissed Sami gently on the lips before walking back over to one of his dressers. Sami sighed wistfully as he swung his legs out over the bed and started looking for his own clothes. “What time is it anyway?”

“Little after eight,” Finn said as he pulled a shirt on over his head. A graphic tee of a yeti and a kaiju getting ready to sumo wrestle. Sami cracked a bit of a smile at that.

“Can’t remember the last time I was up this early,” Sami muttered as he picked his jeans up off the floor and started to slide them back on. At least they mostly dried from the night before. “I feel like most of my days start at noon currently.”

“Hey, I remember that unemployed life,” Finn said as he popped a hoodie on. “I know how much it blows, but you’ll get back on track.”

“Will I?”

“Yes,” Finn said as he picked Sami’s shirt off the floor and handed it to him, leaning in for another quick kiss. “I believe in you. Now, do you mind helping me make the bed?”

Sami let out a small laugh as he pulled his shirt on over his head before turning around to help Finn with the bed. “You know, for a guy I just officially met yesterday, you’ve been way more encouraging than like the last few dates I’ve actually gone on.”

Finn moved his head down, looking sheepish as he straightened out the comforter. “Let me put it this way, Sami Zayn. After you’ve had a string of bad relationships, topped off with an ex who thrived on putting people down, you learn to be kinder. And that’s what I want to be.”

“I feel that,” Sami said as he threw the pillows back in their spots.

The two stood in silence as they finished making the bed. Sami felt uncertain as to what to say next, casting eyes over at Finn for some sort of signal or idea. He really hadn’t had a date go this well in so long, but he just felt stuck. Did he mention Kevin in commiseration, or was that too familiar too fast? Did he ask for a second date, or was that Finn’s duty? Sami was at a loss, until a stray thought from the night before entered his head. “We never drank the tea.”

“I’m sorry?”

“The tea you made last night,” Sami said, scratching his head. “It’s still out in the kitchen because… um…”

“Distraction, right,” Finn said with a slight grin as he walked past Sami towards the kitchen. Sami sighed for a second. He didn’t want to leave, but this wasn’t his space to stretch out in. As he heard the sound of cold tea being poured down the sink, he straightened his back out and headed back out of the room.

———

“So, can we do this again sometime? I don’t want this to just be a one night stand or whatever this was.”

Finn looked back at Sami as they stepped off the porch into the morning snow, his bicycle right beside him. Sami was trying to interpret for a split second if Finn thought that was a weird question or if he was taking it too fast until he asked, “You think this was a one night stand?”

“Well, I don’t really know what to call it when there’s no sex involved. Is that like a sleepover or some weird Urban Dictionary term I don’t know about?”

Finn chuckled as they rolled out towards the street, Sami in the clothes he had worn the night before and Finn all fresh for work in his leather jacket and beanie. “Well, what did you have in mind?”

“About last night or another date?”

“Another date!”

“Oh, right,” Sami said, feeling slightly embarrassed. “Well, it wouldn’t be a date date, but my band has a gig tomorrow night at the Rockit if you want to come.”

“You have a band,” Finn asked, eyebrow raised.

“Yeah, but we’re kind of terrible. Well, Seth Rollins is actually talented and he likes to remind everyone of that.”

“Do you always call him by his first and last name?”

“What? Is that weird? That’s all you were doing last night.”

“Fair point, but your name is fun to say.”

“Seriously though, please come?”

Finn sighed playfully as he climbed onto his bike. “I’ll think about it, Sami Zayn. In the meantime, give me your phone.”

“My phone?”

Sami pulled his phone out of his pocket, which Finn immediately grabbed and furiously typed something into it. He then tossed the phone back to Sami before kissing him on the cheek. “I think you’ll like it. Catch you later, Sami!”

Finn lowered his goggles and grinned as he began to pedal down the street. Sami looked down at his phone to see a new contact screen, with Finn’s name surrounded by the smiling devil emoji and the number of 212-644-7665. Sami couldn’t help but utter a small “wow” before he looked back up to see a trail of melted snow forming in the path of Finn’s bike.

———

“Where have you been, Sami?!”

“And close that door, you’ll catch your death!”

Sami sighed as he looked over at Bayley and Sasha, sitting in the recliner together and watching TV. “Don’t you guys have jobs?”

“We do,” Bayley said as she popped a piece of popcorn in her mouth. “But I’m ‘working from home’ today because of the storm last night.”

“And the heat is out in the studio, so it’s a perfect day to watch Maryse Ouellet movies.”

Sami looked over at their tiny TV, which had been dragged out into the middle of the living room and was sitting on a couple of milk crates. On the TV, a blonde woman was speaking rapid fire Quebecois with yellow subtitles trying their best to keep up with her. “Right, the action heroine darling of Quebec.”

“AKA my crush,” sighed Bayley. “Too bad she’s married to a total American dingbat.”

“Okay, enough about Maryse Ouellet,” Sasha said, quickly pausing the movie. “Are we not going to talk about Sami JUST now getting home from his date last night?”

The girls ooo’d in unison and Sami just rolled his eyes. “Nothing happened. Well, something kind of happened. Like… First base? I think?”

Bayley bounced in the recliner with a squeal while Sasha just held up a hand. “Hold up, you were gone all night for first base?”

“Well, no, Finn didn’t want me going home in the storm, so he let me sleep in his bed.”

“With him?”

“Well… yeah?”

The two girls screamed in unison as they leapt up from the recliner and hugged Sami. “Oh my god, you had a good date,” Bayley practically shouted.

“Well, he might be coming to the gig tomorrow night too, so don’t embarrass me too much, okay?”

“You’ll only embarrass yourself if you wear the grandpa hat,” Sasha said, gently patting Sami on the cheek.

Sami groaned as he broke out of the hug. “As much as I love you girls and your chastising of my fashion choices, I really need to take a shower and put on new clothes, so if you’ll excuse me.”

“So THAT’S what that smell was,” Bayley said with a laugh.

“Ha ha ha,” Sami sarcastically retorted. As he started walking towards the bathroom, he spotted an envelope addressed to him sitting on the kitchen counter. “Did I get mail?”

“Sort of,” Bayley said as she sat back down in the recliner. “It was more taped to the door this morning.”

Sami eyed it suspiciously before picking it up and slowly opening it. Inside was a handwritten letter, which Sami could barely make out. As he scanned over it, he caught the words ‘duel,’ ‘league’ and ‘to the death.’ “Huh…”

“What is it,” Bayley asked.

“I didn’t think people wrote chain letters anymore,” Sami mused as he crumpled the letter and tossed it into the trash.

———

To say Sami was a nervous wreck before doors opened would be one of the biggest understatements of Canadian history. Unable to sit or stand still, he bounced on the balls of his feet for nearly an hour straight during load-in and soundcheck, checking his phone nearly every free moment to see if Finn had confirmed he was coming

Finally, after playing his bass way too fast during their soundcheck song, Roman walked over to Sami and gently put his hands on his shoulders. “Do you need a moment, bro? Because you’ve been bouncing like a jackhammer since we got here.”

Sami came to a stop as he looked up at his larger bandmate, feeling suddenly embarrassed. “Sorry, I’m just nervous.”

“About your boyfriend,” Dean half shouted as he started moving his drums off stage.

“He’s not my boyfriend,” Sami protested. “Well, not yet. I’d like if he was.”

Roman just rubbed his eyes. “Look, Sami. I’m super happy that you have actually found someone who actually seems interested in you, but please find a little bit of chill before Seth Rollins jumps down all our throats.”

“Aww, but that would be fun to watch.”

The two turned to see a tall blonde woman loading drums on stage, a smug smirk on her face. Summer Rae. 32. Social climber/drummer. Roman and Sami rolled their eyes in unison. “Not now, Summer,” Roman groaned.

“But I haven’t heard the gossip yet on Sami’s new beau,” she cooed, giving Sami her most pouty look as she set her snare down. “Is he cute?”

“Oh, you’ll see,” Sami said tersely. “Hey, I’m surprised I didn’t see you at Tyler’s party last weekend.”

Summer’s pout turned into a frown as she let out a small “hmph!” and walked off stage to finish loading on her drums. 

“Ooooo man,” Roman hissed as he turned back to Sami. “Killin’ em with kindness…”

Sami just shrugged. “Hey man, it’s what I’m best at.”

“Really?”

“Well, best in Toronto.”

———

As the doors opened and people began to trickle in, Sami nervously paced around the club, nursing a Dr. Pepper as he did so. Bayley and Sasha were the first of his people to arrive, so naturally they started fussing over him and his appearance. “I don’t even know if he’s coming, guys,” he sighed. “Why are you so worried about this?”

“Worried about what?”

Sami nearly spilled his drink as he spun around at breakneck speed to see Finn walking up, stashing his jacket in his bag. Passing it to Bayley, he practically leaped at Finn as he gave him a hug. “Hey, you actually came!”

“Of course I came,” Finn said, reciprocating the hug before breaking it off to look at Sami. “Sorry I didn’t respond to your texts. Subspace is weird about that…”

Before Sami could say anything else to him, Bayley and Sasha came up from behind him and pushed him out of the way. “Oh, so this is the mysterious Finn, huh,” Sasha said, sizing him up.

“Tell us, what are your intentions with our dear Sami,” Bayley asked in her best mom voice.

Naturally, Sami felt horrified. “Finn, please meet my roommate Bayley and her girlfriend Sasha. I promise they’re not always this weird.”

“That’s a lie,” Bayley amended.

“It’s alright,” Finn said, holding his hand out to the two of them. “Sami’s said only good things about you so far.”

“Also a lie, I’m sure,” Sasha said as she took Finn’s hand and shook it. “But a good one. You pass the first test.”

“Hey, who’s the new guy?”

Sami turned again to see Enzo walking over to them, Cass and a short blonde woman in a leopard print jacket and a black rhinestoned snapback in tow. “Oh hey, uh… this is Finn.”

“Oh, the boyfriend Bayley was telling us about,” Cass asked, looking down at them as he stuffed his hands in his pockets.

Sami felt himself blushing again. He looked over at Finn, who was laughing awkwardly as he scratched the back of his neck. “I… we’re not… Not yet…”

Quickly, Bayley swooped in front of Sami again. He was initially grateful for the save, until he realized his eyes were locked on the girl with Enzo and Cass. “Forget Sami and Finn. Who are you?”

The girl looked up at Bayley, kind of surprised. Enzo seemed oblivious to Bayley’s enthusiasm as he put his arm around her. “Oh sorry, this right here is Carmella. She’s my new hairdresser, but she’s new in town. Thought I’d take her out tonight, show her where the real sights are.”

Carmella smiled at Bayley and held her hand out to her. “How you doin’?”

“Pretty well right about now,” Bayley said as she took Carmella’s hand and matched with her own smile.

Sasha suppressed a snort as she looked over at Sami and Finn. “I give her a half hour,” she muttered under her breath.

“I’m sorry,” asked Finn, looking confused. “Half an hour to what?”

“You’ll see,” Sami replied, trying to stop himself from laughing. “Besides, that’s being generous. I give her twenty, tops.”

Finn wanted to ask more questions, but he was cut off by the sound of a microphone being turned on onstage as the sound guy came on stage. “Uh… Ladies and gentlemen, here’s Charlotte and the Boys.”

As he walked off stage to a smattering of applause, two tall blonde women and a shorter one with silver dyed hair walked onto the stage. Charlotte Flair, 30, self-absorbed, and the one with the guitar and rhinestones by her eyes shot the sound guy a look. “Charlotte and the Boys will actually be ready in a couple of minutes,” she said into the microphone tersely. “Please stand by.”

Sami’s group began to wander upstairs as the band began plugging in. “Tell me Carmella,” Bayley asked as they walked up the stairs to find a set of empty tables. “Do Charlotte and the Boys rock or do they suck?”

Carmella looked at her, eyebrows arched in confusion. “They haven’t really started yet.”

Bayley grinned. “Congratulations. You passed the first test.”

As Sasha snorted again, Finn looked back at Sami. “You gonna join us, Sami Zayn?”

“‘Fraid not,” Sami admitted. “I’m certain Seth Rollins wants to have a ‘strategy meeting’ where we scope out how good the band is now that Charlotte’s dad isn’t in charge. Hopefully my friends don’t scare you too much.”

“I think I can manage,” Finn mused. He then leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. “See you after the show then?”

“D-Definitely,” Sami stammered out.

As he watched Finn walk up the stairs, a hum of a guitar filled the room, causing Sami to snap back into place as he quickly walked to the backstage area. Onstage, the blonde woman with the rhinestones by her eyes walked up to the mic. “Okay, now we’re ready. We are Charlotte and the Boys.”

“WOW, IRONY. SUPER COOL!”

Charlotte shot a glare up to the balcony where Bayley was sitting between Sasha and Carmella. “Okay, this first song is titled ‘Hecklers Gonna Die.’”

With a quick and snappy count in from Summer, the band played a super loud and fast song, full of thick basslines and Charlotte screaming out lyrics about the patriarchy, causing the room to vibrate with color as they did.

———

Backstage, Sami looked out towards the balcony the best he could from the door of the green room. He watched as Finn intently watched the show, face hard to read as he watched Charlotte and the Boys play their song.

Behind him, Seth Rollins had started shouting and pacing nervously. “Oh my god, when did they get good? How are they doing that thing with the color?!”

“Chill out, Seth,” Roman intoned.

“I can’t be chill,” Seth screeched. “How are we supposed to follow this? We’re nowhere near this level. Oh god, Sami can you SAY SOMETHING?! YOU’RE FREAKING ME OUT!”

———

As the song came to an end with a final strong bass note, a smattering of applause came from the audience on the floor. That was enough to give Charlotte a smug grin. “Thank you, guys. Give it up for Dana on bass!”

Dana Brooke, 27 and the bass player who works out more than you, took a quick bow before flexing her right arm in victory to another smattering of applause.

“IT’S NOT A RACE, LADIES.”

This time, both Charlotte and Dana shot glares up to Bayley in the balcony. After a few tense seconds, Charlotte leaned into the mic and said, “Okay, this one goes up to the bitch in the balcony. I call it ‘Shut the Hell Up, Bayley.’”

“Sweet,” Bayley declared with a smile looking over at Sasha and Finn. “This one’s my favorite.”

As Bayley watched and bobbed along to their angry thrashing song that seemed to be making the downstairs turn black and white, Finn looked over at Sasha confused. “Is she always like this?”

“Not really,” Sasha said, shaking her head and taking a sip of wine from a plastic cup. “She really only does this to Charlotte’s band because all three of us used to be friends a long time ago. Key word there is ‘used.’ Really, she’s quite sweet when she’s not heckling or giving Sami’s new boyfriends the third degree.”

“Oh, me and Sami are not…”

Sasha gave Finn the most incredulous look imaginable. “Please. I give you until the end of the night before you and Sami are official.”

“Ignore her, bro,” Enzo shouted over the music. “She likes to pretend she’s psychic.”

“Instinct,” Sasha shouted back. “I’m not psychic nor do I pretend to be. I just have good instinct. Like my instinct is telling me…”

Before she could finish, the band finished their song to another smattering of applause. “Thank you all. We have one last song for you. We call it ‘Last Song Kills The Audience’ and it’ll be the last song you ever hear! Two, three, four!”

———

Sami woke up slumped against the door of the green room. He looked around to see Seth and Roman in similar positions on the couch, sitting back up in a haze. Dean, however, was fully upright and walking over to him. “Ugh, what happened?”

“Apparently Charlotte and the Boys new wave of experimental includes knocking the audience out for ten minutes,” said Dean, holding out a hand to Sami to help him up. “Well, most of them. I guess it didn’t work on me or Bayley or Enzo’s new girl.”

“How do you know it didn’t work on them?”

Before Dean could answer, he heard a shout of “DAMMIT BAYLEY, NOT AGAIN.” He walked out of the green room door towards the stage to see Bayley and Carmella making out at their table, with Enzo off to the side looking perplexed. As Sasha came to, she looked over at Bayley with a grin before looking out at the stage right at Sami. “Hey, you were right about the twenty minutes!”

Sami grinned sheepishly at that before he looked over at Finn next to Sasha, who was coming to himself. He shook out his head and seemed to be unpopping his ears for a second before he caught Sami’s eye and gently waved at him. Sami waved back, but his moment was cut off by Seth coming up behind him. “Sami, we need to get ready. _Now._ ”

“Right, right,” Sami muttered as he looked back at Seth. He briefly looked back at Finn and waved again before he walked back off stage to help the band load back on.

For the next several minutes, the band rushed to get their gear on stage, set up and plugged in. Sami tried his best not to get distracted by Finn on the balcony, but he’d occasionally cast quick glances as he set up his bass rig and did checks to make sure his sound was okay. Finally, after everyone was good to go, the sound guy came back on stage and up to the microphone. “Okay, um. Thanks for staying everyone. This is The Shield.”

There were a few polite claps from the audience and super loud “WOOOOOOO!” from Bayley upstairs. Sami looked up to see her arms around Sasha and Carmella, with Finn off to the side of them laughing and clapping along. Finally, there was Enzo and Cass on the other side of him, with Enzo pouting and Cass just patting him on the shoulder with a headshake. Sami smiled at the scene as Seth stepped up to the microphone. “As he said, we’re the Shield. We’re not going to knock you out. Let’s have some fu-”

“WE ARE THE SHIELD! ONE TWO THREE FOUR!”

Seth briefly rolled his eyes at Dean as they were counted in, but they quickly lept into a song called ‘Garbage Truck,’ which was a bit more mid tempo and chill than a lot of their songs. Sami bobbed and strummed along on bass as Roman added some smooth bass vocals to Seth’s scratchy sort of sing-talk-scream. Plus, Dean wasn’t even trying to jump ahead in the song.

He looked up to see Finn bobbing along to the music. Maybe there was a bit of a smile on his face too? Either way, Sami felt himself relax for the first time all day. Perhaps this whole thing was going to go we-

Just then, a loud crashing noise came from the roof. The band looked up to see a large and pale figure zooming in towards them, finger pointed at Sami. “SAMI ZAYN,” the figure bellowed in a deep Irish accent. “CONSIDER OUR FIGHT BEGUN!”

For a second, Sami felt a bit of overload as he watched this figure barrel towards him. What was he supposed to do? Why was this person coming for him? Why did they come in through the roof of all places? Was it too late to run?”

“OLÉ! OLÉ OLÉ OLÉ,” Bayley screamed from the balcony. Sami looked over to see her standing at the edge of it, fist raised. “FIGHT! FIGHT!”

Suddenly, Sami snapped to. Quickly, he threw his bass over to Seth, signalling for him to get off the stage as soon as he caught it. As the figure came down towards him, Sami crossed him with a right, reversing the oncoming hit. He then jumped up, catching the man into an air juggle, not letting up on the strikes until he hit a combo 60, then quickly snapped a kick, forcing the man onto the ground. Usually, that would cause a crater in the dance floor for most men, but it just caused this man to skid back as he found his footing again.

As Sami landed on the ground in a crouch, he finally got a chance to size up his sudden opponent. He was extremely tall, and somehow even paler and more ginger than Sami. His hair was done up into a mohawk and his beard was braided with silver beads. A septum piercing hung in his nose and his clothing was a strange mix of hipster and pirate. Or maybe it was just hipster and the beard was giving Sami pirate vibes. Around his neck, there was a black choker with a spiky silver design in the middle. “Look, I don’t know who you are or why you’re attacking my gig, but can you please leave?”

“YEAH, THAT’S SAMI ZAYN, THE BEST FIGHTER IN MONTREAL YOU’RE MESSING WITH!”

“Thanks Bayley!”

The man adjusted his jaw and looked at Sami with confusion. “Did you not get my letter?”

“No? Well, I got a chain letter or something the other day, but I just threw it in the trash.”

The man groaned. “Oh my god, I thought you Canadians were supposed to be polite. How am I supposed to challenge you to a fight if you can’t even read the damn letter!”

“Dude, sorry,” Sami apologized, shrugging all the same. “Just… who are you?”

The man then cracked a knowing grin as he looked straight at Sami. “Who am I? I am Sheamus O'Shaunessy!” He then gestured, flexing his arm and pointing with one finger as he looked up towards the balcony. “And I am Finn Bálor’s first evil ex-boyfriend!”

Sami snapped his head back towards the balcony, looking at Finn. It appeared that everyone else was looking at him too. Finn just sort of began to shrink in his seat as a result. “I’m sorry,” Sami shouted. “Your WHAT?!”

Before Finn could respond, Sheamus rushed towards Sami with a kick, but Sami ducked out of the way. Sheamus came at him with a flurry of punches, which Sami tried his best to block, but eventually became too much for him as Sheamus slugged him against the face and caused him to slide across the floor of the club. A bunch of hipsters ran out of the way as Sami came to a stop by the wall, his breath escaping his body as he did. He was really getting rusty at this. “Did you really date this bozo,” he shouted up towards the balcony as he stood up and started cracking his neck.

Suddenly a spotlight swung towards the balcony and Sami looked up to see that it was cast on Finn. He sighed as he walked towards the balcony and leaned across it. “Yeah, like in secondary school. We were getting chased around by the rugby team and decided to join forces to take them down. We dated less than a week and we only kissed once, but I told him it was never going to last. I guess he never got over it.”

“THAT KISS WAS FOREVER AND YOU KNOW IT, BÁLOR!”

Using the distraction, Sami came up from behind Sheamus to take him down to the ground. He then ran back towards the stage, jumping onto the edge of it before hitting a backflip that came down with a stomp onto Sheamus as he was struggling to get back up. Sami was certain that was going to take him down, but Sheamus just laughed. “Oh boy-o, you’re going to need a lot more than that.”

Suddenly, Sheamus’ fists seemed to glow red with heat as fire suddenly seemed to erupt from his hands. Sami took a step back as Sheamus began throwing fireballs at him, bobbing and weaving as the crowd parted, screaming as they got out of the way. Finally, he was backed against the edge of the stage, Sheamus right in his face, ready to deliver a firey killing blow. “Nowhere to run, little man.”

“Don’t think so.”

WHAM! Sami knocked his head into Sheamus’ nose, causing him to stumble back. The fire in his hands dying down as he held onto his nose. Without a second thought, Sami rushed over, grabbing onto him and delivering an exploder suplex back towards the edge of the stage. Sheamus flopped over like a rag doll, clawing his way up as Sami backed up.

“FINISH HIM,” Bayley shouted from the balcony.

“Don’t need the input,” he shouted as he sized Sheamus up. As Sheamus tried to rush back towards him, a smile cracked across Sami’s face. “I got this.”

With a hop and a leap, Sami rushed towards Sheamus as fast as he could. Sheamus tried to match his speed and hit him with a fireball, but it was too late. By the time he was charged up, Sami had hit him with a hell of a kick to the jaw that caused him to fly up into the air for a few brief and slow seconds before crumpling back over onto the ground in a heap. 

**_KO!_ **

“YEAH! GO SAMI! GO SAMI!”

As Bayley celebrated on the balcony and the crowd of people closed back in, Sami walked over towards Sheamus, his arm gently extended out as a sign of peace. Before he could check on him though, a glow of light came from around his neck. Then, that glow turned into a flash. Sami shielded his eyes as it happened, expecting another attack, but instead, he was met with a jangle as Sheamus’ body disappeared and was replaced with coins. “Huh…”

Sami crouched down and picked it up, which only added up to be about $2.15. “Not even enough for the bus. Damn.”

“C’mon, we gotta go.”

He looked up to see Finn rushing towards him, picking him up off the ground and walking him back towards the door of the club. Around them, everyone was looking at them with confusion amidst the smoldering mess of their fight. “Can I at least get my coat first?!”

———

On the bus, Sami and Finn sat in silence for the first few miles of the trip. Sami had managed to get his coat, his hat and his bass before he left, but there had been no time for explanations or goodbyes to his friends. He wasn’t even sure they were on the right bus currently to any of their places. He resolved to at least talk to the owner of Rockit tomorrow, but right now, there were more pressing issues. “You wanna talk about what happened back there?”

Finn sighed and buried his face in his hands. He rubbed his eyes and looked back towards Sami. “Do you really want to know?”

“I mean, I did sort of get attacked by a large and pirate-y Irishman who claimed you used to date. And he might have exploded into change maybe? Yeah, I want to know.”

Finn sighed again as he leaned back into his seat and looked towards the bus ceiling. After a few seconds of muttering something to himself, he sat back up and looked towards Sami. “Okay, here’s the truth as I know it. If you want to date me, you have to fight my seven evil exes.”

“Seven evil exes?”

“Yep,” Finn nodded. “Seven of them. And defeat them as well. I’m not even entirely certain who they are yet. I just got the email about it today, but if Sheamus is any indicator, they’re about to get way worse.”

“So I literally have to fight AND defeat seven of your exes if we’re going to date?”

“Yeah.”

“So we’re… dating?”

Finn looked up at Sami, a strangely hopeful look in his eye. Not something he really expected from a man receiving news that he was going to have to fight seven exes in order to date him. “I mean, if you want to. I can understand if fighting seven of my very worst exes is a turn off.”

“You clearly haven’t met my last ex,” Sami laughed. “So… does that mean I can call you my boyfriend without it being weird?”

“You ready to admit that Sasha was right?”

“What?”

“Nothing,” Finn said with a shake of his head. “I’ll explain it to you later. Right now, I think I just want to kiss my boyfriend.”

With a grin, Sami leaned over and planted his lips on Finn’s. Sure, it was suddenly and strangely more complicated and he had a lot of questions about how exactly he was going to navigate all of this. But for now, he would gladly oblige this request on the 142.


	4. Lights, Camera, Inaction

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sami has bad dreams, a date at his place, and another evil ex to deal with.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry the update took so long! This chapter got long and had to be done between work and a trip to Toronto. No, really! Anyway, please enjoy and thanks again to iggypup87 for the beta read!

April turned into May, the last of the snow melting off with it, much to Sami’s relief. Patios began opening up and happy couples began enjoying the warm weather outside. Sami and Finn among them. 

It was weird territory for Sami. Not unexplored, but it had been a long time since he had been in an actual new relationship with someone. He kept expecting the bottom to fall out at any point, but no matter how many times they went out to the park and around the Wychwood neighborhood, out to bars with Sami’s friends or alone, at band practice or just sat in Finn’s apartment watching movies, it never did. Finn even liked his grandpa hat! Sami hadn’t even thought of approaching the topic of sex yet, but it almost didn’t seem to matter. For once, it seemed like things were going well.

Except for one thing.

“Have you told him about Kevin yet?”

Sami groaned as he slumped against the door and sunk to the ground as he walked in after another date with Finn. “No. I chickened out again.”

Bayley sighed as she paused her movie to jump off her recliner. “Sami, you can’t keep delaying this. If you’re going to progress in your relationship, you might want to tell Finn ‘Hey, let me tell you about my shitty ex and his band that’s coming into town in a few weeks. You know, just in case I hide for a week.’”

“Or I could not tell him and try functioning like a regular human being.”

Bayley shot Sami a look as she sat on the floor across from him. “That’s not how that works and you know it.”

“Yeah, I know,” he sighed.

“Look, you’re going to have to face off with this man’s evil exes. Hell, you’ve already beat one. Maybe the next step is to tell him about yours.”

“But it’s haaaaard.”

“Yeah, well, welcome to being in a relationship again.”

“Says the girl in two of them.”

“Exactly my point,” Bayley said, booping his nose. “You think this shit is hard with one person? Try two.”

Sami couldn’t help but chuckle at that. “How is it going with Carmella anyway?”

“Pretty great,” she said with a smile and nod. “She’s actually starting to see Enzo as well. And I think Cass?”

“Really now?”

“Yeah, it’s new territory for all of them, but she’s a champ. I think she’ll be alright. And so will you if you talk to Finn about Kevin.”

Sami groaned again, but this time more playfully. “Don’t gossip block me, Bayley! How will I survive?!”

“Much like nature, I’m certain you’ll find a way.”

———

“Hey, can I ask you a weird question?”

Sami looked up at Finn from the place on his couch, as they curled up to watch some superhero movie that had come out the previous summer. Sami braced for the worst. “Yeah, what’s up?”

“So like, we’ve been hanging out at my place all the time,” Finn mused, scratching his chin.

“Yeah, we do. Is there a problem with that?”

“No no,” Finn responded. “I just… wonder if we can hang out at your place sometime?”

Sami arched an eyebrow at that one. “Why? You’ve seen my place. It’s a goddamn shithole.”

“Yeah, I know, but I think it would be nice to do something at your place for once. I feel like you try to hide it from me because Bayley or how it looks…”

“Because it looks terrible.”

Finn sighed and leaned over to Sami, resting himself on his chest. “Sami, I don’t expect your life to be clean, okay? I want to get to know _you._ ”

It was Sami’s turn to sigh as he thought back to his conversation with Bayley from the night before. He was going to have to see those worse parts of his life sooner or later. Might as well ease him into it. “Okay, but don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

Finn grinned at that and leaned up to kiss Sami on the lips. “You get no judgement from me. Well, maybe a bit of judgement.”

“Hey,” Sami playfully shouted, giving his best exaggerated pout. “I could just leave right now and you can forget all about watching _The Return of Atomic Man._ ”

“Or you could stay here and we could forget about _The Return of Atomic Man._ ”

“How do you suggest that?”

Finn smirked as he leaned in again, cupping Sami’s cheek as he kissed him slowly. As he pulled away after a few seconds, Sami took a deep breath. “Okay, I think I could put up with that.”

With a laugh, Sami pulled Finn in closer, forgetting all about his desire to watch superhero movies for the night.

———

“So what, you only got to like second base?”

“Maybe? What’s second base again?”

“Hands in the pants.”

“No Sasha, that’s not it,” Bayley retorted as she sat up between Sasha and Sami on the mattress. “It’s over the pants. In the pants is like halfway to third.”

“So what’s third?”

“Ohmygod, are you guys like thirteen,” asked Carmella, draping herself across all three of them from the other side of Sami.

Sami felt himself getting a bit more flustered as this conversation continued. “Look guys, whether I hooked up with or got to whatever base with Finn doesn’t matter. What matters is that I offered to let him over here in a few days and I have no idea what I’m going to do.”

“Make him dinner,” Carmella offered as Bayley began stroking her hair. “Mom always told me that’s the quickest way to a man’s heart. Or anyone’s heart, really.”

“I want to do that so badly,” Sami sighed. “I want to make him the best Syrian meal anyone could ever ask for.”

“What can you actually afford to do,” Bayley asked, looking up from Carmella.

“Maybe store bought hummus and pasta?”

“I can’t tell what’s worse,” Sasha sighed. “How bad you got it for this boy or how sad your bank account is.”

“The answer is yes,” Sami groaned as he fell back onto the mattress.

———

As the days got closer to his at home date with Finn, Sami started having anxiety dreams. They were over little things at first, like burning pasta while it boiled or Finn standing him up. Then they slowly began to snowball. Words getting literally caught in his throat. Getting stabbed by an evil ex that he imagined to be way taller and hunkier. Burning his only home down and being left to die in the snow because he couldn’t do anything right.

Tonight, the apartment was a movie set, filled with bright lights and expensive cameras. He cowered as he sat up in bed. “Please, I don’t feel comfortable about this.”

“No one cares what you want,” growled a voice from the director’s chair. 

Sami froze and felt every part of him begin to turn. He couldn’t see the director, but he knew that voice anywhere. “Kevin, please…”

“WHAT DID I JUST SAY?! NO ONE CARES.”

Sami flinched, suddenly feeling something wrap around his throat. It felt like a hand ready to choke him, but it was inhuman and dark at the same time.

Suddenly, the door flung open and a cool May breeze rolled in for a split second until the door slammed closed again. “SAMI!”

———

Sami woke with a start to a loud banging on the door. No bright lights or expensive cameras were in there. Just everything he shared with Bayley.

And no Kevin. Just him.

“Sami,” shouted Finn from behind the door, his voice muffled between loud knocks. “Sami, are you okay?”

Sami got up and walked over to the door. He opened it to see Finn looking distressed, his bike tossed to the side on the small patch of yard next to the door. Quickly, Finn wrapped his arms around Sami’s neck in a hug. “Oh thank god. I promise I didn’t mean to bike through your head like that, but I was clipping by and I just saw… something…”

“It’s fine,” Sami whispered, feeling genuinely surprised that Finn was showing this much concern over one of his dreams. He wrapped his arms around Finn’s waist, returning the hug. “Just a bad dream. Kind of have them all the time.”

“You say that too normally,” Finn sighed. “Still, I promise I won’t go through your head like that again.”

“You’re just trying to do your job,” Sami replied as he broke away from the hug. “I swear, I’m okay.”

“Okay, but promise me that you’ll tell me if there’s anything weird like that in your dreams again.”

“I will,” Sami said, feeling confused at Finn’s weirdness over his dreams. “But I’m telling you, it’s nothing to worry about.”

Finn looked at him skeptically as he picked his bike off the ground. “Alright, but that’s not going to stop me from worrying.”

Sami chuckled as he shook his head. “Get back to work, I’ll see you tonight.”

“See you,” Finn muttered as he leaned over to kiss Sami on the cheek before hopping back on his bike and riding off down the street. Sami watched him ride off and disappear over the curve of the street before closing the door and staggering back to the mattress, slumping down into it as he let out a sob.

———

“Sami, what are you doing? Don’t you have a date to get the place ready for tonight?”

Sami looked up from where he had been on the mattress for a few hours to see Bayley walking in through the door all excitedly and way early than she usually did for a Friday afternoon. “Don’t you have to be at work for another two hours?”

“Technically, yes,” Bayley said, throwing her laptop case on the kitchen counter as she began slipping out of her work pants. “But Xavier invited me and the girls out to the set of the newest Maryse Ouellet movie and my boss let me dip out early to get ready! Isn’t that great?”

“Real awesome, Bayley,” Sami intoned, turning over on the mattress.

Bayley raised an eyebrow at Sami’s tone. She walked over to the mattress and sat down next to it. “Okay, what’s wrong?”

“I… I don’t know,” Sami sighed as he turned back towards Bayley. “I had a dream kind of about Kevin? Maybe? It was weird, but Finn saw some of it while he was working and he freaked out about it, and then I freaked out because…”

“You still don’t know how to talk to him about Kevin?”

“Yeah, no.”

Bayley sighed as she placed her hand on Sami’s. “Look, maybe it’s not a thing to broach tonight and you have to figure out when that’s right, but you have shit you still need to do. What can I do to help?”

“I don’t know…”

“How about you take a shower first and I can pull out everything you need for dinner?”

“What about you getting ready to meet your celebrity crush?”

“Bro, I got an hour until Sasha gets here. I got some wiggle room. Just let me help you, okay?”

Sami looked up at Bayley, who was giving him one of her assured smiles. With a deep breath, he sat up and nodded, feeling a bit more human already. “Okay.”

———

So Sami showered. He got dressed in his best possible t-shirt and jeans combo, feeling a whole new knot of nerves in his stomach. Mentally, he started to move away from the looming Kevin topic and started focusing on making the best possible dinner out of what little he had. Luckily, Bayley had at least been willing to toss in for some chicken, so Sami wasn’t completely flying on carbs and pasta sauce alone.

 _“La-ah-ahhh,”_ Sami admonished as he chased Sasha’s hand away from a plate of homemade garlic pita chips and hummus with a spatula. “Not for you, Banks.”

Sasha pouted as she looked up at Sami. “Love how the pink apron goes with your complexion, Zayn.”

“Don’t be mean tonight, Sasha,” Bayley said as she came up from behind and hugged Sasha. “Sami’s got a hot date and we might get to meet Maryse!”

“I guess you’re right,” Sasha sighed happily. “I guess I should go easy on him. Even with that frilly pink apron that would only work on my grandma.”

“Ha ha, it’s your girlfriend’s,” Sami said dryly as he dumped chicken from the pan into a pot full of strained pasta.

“Correction: my grandma and Bayley.”

Sami just rolled his eyes as he refocused onto the sauce bubbling on the stove, sprinkling some of the small selection of spices they owned into it to make it taste less like it came from a jar. “Look, I’ve had a rough day and there’s one apron in this entire apartment to keep me from turning into an accidental slob trying to make a decent dinner for my boyfriend, so today is not the day for me taking your shit.”

Sasha put a hand to her chest, mocking offense. “Sami, I am hurt.”

“Wounded even?”

Just then, there was knock at the door. “Is that Carmella,” Sami asked, turning the heat off on the stove.

“No, we’re meeting her at Casa Loma,” Bayley said, walking over to the door. “So I guess that means by process of elimination…”

She swung the door open and in walked Finn, dressed in jeans, a button down, a black tie, and a black suit jacket. His messenger bag hug by his side as he looked in the kitchen and smiled at Sami. In his arms, he held a vase full of roses. “Hey, I know I’m a bit late, but I thought I’d get you flowers to dress up the place.”

Sami felt his jaw drop a bit as Bayley cooed and took the roses from him. “Oh man, that’s so nice of you. Thank you, Finn.”

“Yeah, I… uh… thanks, though you’re actually early, I think,” Sami muttered, feeling flustered. “Um, Bayley? Can I talk to you in the bathroom?”

“Uh, sure,” Bayley responded, her voice filled with confusion as she placed the roses on the counter. Quickly, she followed Sami into their tiny bathroom, shutting the door behind her. “What’s wrong now?”

“Finn just showed up to our shitty place in a suit jacket and tie,” Sami whispered, his hands flailing as he did so. “And he brought roses. No one’s ever brought me roses!”

“And? Most people wouldn’t freak out about that.”

“Yeah, but he’s so great. How soon is he going to realize I’m not?”

Bayley sighed and reached her hands out to Sami’s cheeks, squishing them. “Lies, Sami Zayn. You’re great. Kevin’s a filthy liar and this boy is a keeper. Enjoy your date and try not to get the sheets dirty.”

“But…”

“Okay fine, if you freak out at any point, give me a call and come out to Casa Loma? I’m sure he’d love to see a castle anyway.”

Sami took a deep breath and nodded, his cheeks rubbing against Bayley’s hands. “Okay. I think I can manage that.”

“Awesome. Now go get him, tiger!”

Before Sami could say anything else, Bayley took her hands off Sami’s cheeks and opened the door, pushing him back out into the kitchen. As Sami stumbled a bit, Bayley zipped past him and grabbed Sasha’s hand. “Oh, would you look at the time,” she said, looking at her phone. “Looks like we gotta head out. Our date with destiny awaits!”

“I thought it was your date with Maryse,” Finn asked with a giggle.

“Only if she asks nicely,” Sasha replied. “Or meanly. I think we’d say yes either way!”

“Either way, don’t wait up, boys,” Bayley shouted as she and Sasha walked out the door hand in hand. “Have a good night!”

As the door slammed shut behind them, Finn turned to Sami, a smile on his face. “Nice apron.”

Sami looked down at in and sighed. “It’s the only apron we have.”

“No no, it’s fine,” Finn assured as he walked over to Sami. “I think it looks nice.”

“Not as nice as you,” Sami said, untying the apron in the back. “You seriously came to my place in a tie?”

“I wanted to make it special.” Finn reached over behind Sami, helping him take the apron off over his head. “I mean, I know you were cooking, so I figured I’d at least look nice. And try to make your place look nice.”

“Well, the roses are lovely,” Sami said, briefly kissing Finn on the lips. “Thank you for making this hole look a bit more tolerable.”

“You’re welcome,” Finn said as he tossed the apron onto the counter. “Now, what’s for dinner? I’m starving.”

“Oh, I see how it is.”

“Sami!”

Finn playfully swatted Sami, who laughed as he reached over into the cabinet to pull two plates down. “Well, we got bow tie pasta with garlic chicken and sauce, and a side of fresh garlic pita chips and hummus. Sorry that it isn't more fancy, but money. You know how it is.”

“I do,” Finn muttered as he took a plate from Sami. “But I bet it’s great anyway.”

“Yeah well, don't get TOO excited. I was mostly trying to make sure they actually tasted fresh. Also, we’re going to have to eat on the floor because the recliner is the only chair.”

“That’s fine,” Finn said as he scooped out some pasta onto his plate. “Again, it’s all fine. I just wanted to spend some time here with you.”

“Yeah, I know. Doesn't stop me from worrying.”

“About what?”

“Impressions, possible perceived insanity, weird things you see in my head… y’know, the usual.”

“Look, about this morning…” Finn’s voice already sounded apologetic as he sat on the floor. “I wasn’t really paying attention to where I was…”

“Don’t worry about it,” Sami mumbled as he brought the plate of hummus and pita chips over with him. “I just have weird dreams. You’d don’t have to concern yourself with them.”

“Well, I just don’t want to invade your privacy!”

“I bet you say that to all the boy’s heads you go through,” Sami mused with a playful smile.

“Sami! I’m serious!”

“I know, I know.” He couldn’t help but smile though as he reached for the pita. “And I really do appreciate that. I’m just telling you that I’m fine.”

“You didn’t look fine though.”

Sami looked at Finn for a second, his eyes betraying the too cool to care demeanor he was trying to create. Quickly, he scooped up the hummus and popped it in his mouth, feeling the garlic tingle on his tongue. “Mmm… okay, you gotta try this. I think I did pretty alright for myself this time all things considered.”

“What did you do,” Finn sighed, but still leaning in closer to Sami.

“Just basted store brand pita with my mom’s special butter and garlic mix and baked it till it was crunchy.” Sami scooped another chip and held it out to Finn. “I swear, I could eat this with every meal, even if it made me fat. I wouldn’t care.”

Finn leaned over and took a bite right out of Sami’s fingers. With a few slow chews and a low ‘mmmmm’ noise coming from his throat, Sami felt a satisfied feeling in his stomach. “Okay, yeah, that’s pretty good.”

“Right? And imagine if I had good hummus!”

———

“Seriously, have you ever contemplated cooking as a career?”

“Oh c’mon…”

Sami and Finn were curled up together in the recliner, some cooking show on in the background. Dinner had gone well enough, with Finn recounting weird stories from the past couple of days at work. Kevin’s name had been at the tip of Sami’s tongue a couple of times, but he swallowed it back, not wanting to ruin a night that was going well.

“Seriously,” Finn cooed as he nuzzled his head against Sami’s. “I know you had to work with limited resources, but you made some serious magic there.”

“You overestimate my skills some, but I appreciate the compliment.” Sami couldn’t help but smile to himself a bit as he buried his nose in Finn’s hair, the smell of pine and soap coming through his nose.

“Okay, but mark my words…”

“Hush, you.”

“Oh yeah,” Finn asked, his voice mischievous as he turned over slightly to look at Sami. “Make me.”

With a smirk, Sami leaned in, kissing Finn on the lips three times in quick succession. “That enough to shut you up?”

“I don’t know, I think I could use a little bit more.”

Sami sighed playfully as he leaned in again, this time cupping Finn’s face in his hand as he kissed him long and slow, feeling the scratchiness of his beard under his calloused fingers. After a minute, he pulled back, a smile crossing his face as he saw Finn’s dazed expression. “How about now?”

“Nope, need more time,” Finn whispered. 

He then wrapped his fingers around the collar of Sami’s shirt, pulling him back into him, causing Sami to utter a ‘whoa’ followed with a laugh as his lips met Finn’s and they were back to kissing. Finn met his laugh slightly before he refocused on the kissing, his tongue slowly darting past Sami’s lips, asking to be met. Sami obliged, shifting his weight around in the chair as he gave Finn a bit more leverage. It occurred to him in the back of his mind that they could take this to the mattress, but he’d wait on that.

Suddenly, Finn stopped as he began running his fingers through Sami’s hair, smile still on his face. “Hey, your hair is getting kind of shaggy.”

“What, really?” Sami ran his own hands through his hair for a second, face twisted in confusion as he realized Finn was right. “I… I guess it is. Is… is that a problem?”

“No, not really,” Finn mused, tracing his finger along Sami’s ear. That normally would drive Sami wild, but he was too focused on Finn’s words right now. “Just sort of observing. When was the last time you got a haircut though?”

“I mean, I just sort of shave it off when it starts getting long for me. Haven’t done that since before we started dating though, and I really haven’t had a nice haircut since…”

Sami’s words fell short as he remembered. The terrible haircut he got from a friend of a friend five years ago on New Year’s Eve. The one he got in a daze of doubt and sadness over his relationship. The one he got right before he went to the party where his friends Matt and Nick were filming a music video with bright lights and video equipment. The one where it all fell apart with…  
“Kevin.”

“I’m sorry?”

Sami snapped back to reality and looked up at Finn, who was staring at him with bright blue eyes of confusion. “Uh… what?”

“You just sort of spaced out there for a second and then randomly said ‘Kevin.’ Is everything alright, Sami?”

Sami felt his heart begin to speed up. Or stop. He couldn’t really tell at the moment since he was starting to go into panic mode about it. This was not how he envisioned telling Finn about the worst night of his life. “I… uh… well…”

Finally, Sami sighed in defeat, remembering what Bayley had told him in the bathroom a couple of hours before. “Do you want to go see a castle?”

Finn’s face immediately contorted in confusion as he began to sat up. “I’m sorry… A _what?_ ”

———

“Holy shit, you weren’t kidding about there being a castle.”

Sami laughed nervously as he scratched the back of his neck as the ascended up the Baldwin Steps towards Casa Loma. “Yeah. Like basically, this super rich dude wanted to build his wife a castle, so he spent his entire fortune doing so and never even completely finished the place. It’s basically a museum now, but they shoot movies here and stuff because it’s super gothic. Not to mention it’s super pretty on the inside.”

“Maybe you can take me to see the inside some day?”

“What, you really want to go on a Toronto tourist date?”

“Hey, I’m new here. Cut me a little slack.”

The two reached the top of the arduous staircase, Finn still looking up at the castle the entire way as he reached for Sami’s hand. “Still, that’s amazing.”

Sami smiled to himself a little as they walked towards the front of the building, where Bayley was waiting on them. He felt kind of bad about bringing Finn out like this as an attempt to come down from his own freakout, but it made him happy to at least try and show Finn some of his home. Well, his makeshift one, at least.

“Hey guys!”

Sami looked up to see Bayley standing next to Xavier, waving them over. He pulled on Finn’s hand slightly to capture his attention away from the spires of Casa Loma and gestured towards Bayley. “Hey Bayley, hey Xavier. Thanks for getting us here last minute.”

“Oh, it’s no problem,” Xavier said casually as he reached over to give Sami a hug. “Just pulled a couple of strings. Just gotta promise not to make eye contact with Maryse.”

“Is that a problem for you, Bayley,” Finn inquired, looking at her with raised eyebrows.

“No,” she sighed wistfully. “Just to be in her presence is enough.”

“Okay, enough hanging around. Let’s get in there.” Xavier then made a grand gesture, pointing their way into the set, which was set up in the garden, blinding lights surrounding as everything was made up to look like a turn of the century garden party. Sami felt himself slip into a similar awe as Finn as he looked at the way the lights played in the flowers and the fountain.

“Who invited the uggos?”

Sami was immediately dragged back into reality as he sighed and looked over at Tyler, who was sitting in a chair covered with some sort of fur near the craft services table and looking at the two of them with disdain. Near him, Sasha and Carmella were grazing, not paying much attention to the arrival of their friends. “Hello to you, too, Tyler. Though you weren’t saying that about Finn last month.”

“Yeah, but now he’s dating you. Sheen’s all worn off.”

“I’m sorry, what were you saying about me last month,” Finn asked, tearing his eyes away from the surroundings.

“I told you already, honey,” Sami whispered, looking back at Finn. “When we sorta first met, Tyler thought you were TOO PRETTY FOR ME.”

He cast those last words with a pointed look at Tyler, who just shrugged. “I just tell the truth, Zayn.”

“Mmmhmm.” Finn nodded wordlessly for a few seconds before he turned back to Sami, reaching his hands to his face and catching him by surprise with a kiss. As he fell into it, Tyler made a loud groan, which made both Sami and Finn laugh, breaking the kiss.

“Okay, okay,” Sasha said, walking between them with a bag of chips in hand. “Enough with trying to gross out Tyler. Maryse is going to be out here any minute!”

“What is she filming anyway,” Sami asked, looking back around the garden. “Her movies are a bit less… period…”

“It’s some turn of the century romance,” Bayley answered, walking behind them and over to Sasha. She reached into Sasha’s bag of chips and pulled out a couple. “Or horror. Xavier, you were a bit unclear on that.”

“To be honest, I really don’t know either. I just know she’s filming it with her husband.”

Finn raised an eyebrow at that. “Husband?”

Just then, the door of a nearby trailer swung open, causing Bayley, Sasha and Carmella to go running. After a few long seconds of suspense, Maryse in all of her blonde glory stepped out, wearing a vaguely Victorian dress as she did. Sami watched as Bayley and Sasha held each other’s hands, holding their breath in fangirling suspense as she walked by all three of them, only barely acknowledging their existence out of the corner of her eye. As she walked away, the two of them let out a quiet squeal of happiness as they faced each other. Sami couldn’t help but feel happy for them in a strange way.

“So Maryse has a husband,” Finn asked, his voice in stage whisper as he put his arm around Sami’s waist. “The girls have never mentioned that.”

“Yeah, some American reality show guy.” Sami rested his head on Finn’s as he placed his arm around his shoulders. “Apparently he acts too, but Bayley says he’s not really that great. His name’s like Mike… Mizantry? Mizulu?”

“Mizanin,” Finn said, his voice suddenly distant.

“Yeah, Miz for short!” Sami looked over at Finn, who was in the middle of rubbing his eyes. “How did you know that?”

“ASSISTANT! WHERE’S MY COFFEE?!”

Sami jerked his head over to see a blonde man wearing aviators and the same kind of vaguely Victorian appearance come stomping out of the trailer. A meek girl came running up holding a cup of coffee and looking somehow both fearful and disdainful of him. Around his neck, Sami spotted a sheen of silver. Finn groaned. “This is not what I wanted…”

“What? To hear angry and petty movie stars on our date?”

“No, to not hear angry and petty movie stars I used to date.”

“WHAT?!”

Everyone in proximity turned to shush Sami. His cheek briefly flushed pink, but he took a deep breath and dropped his voice to a stage whisper. “I’m sorry, you used to date a movie star?”

“When we were both like 15 and for two months,” Finn replied as he turned to face Sami. “He was a snotty nosed kid over on some sort of exchange program and he wouldn’t stop following me around until I agreed to date him. Glad to see nothing’s changed.” He accented that with an eyeroll before casting a sideways glance at Miz.

“So wait… snotty nosed kid that you dumped that has turned into an ego maniac…” Sami sighed as he ran his hand down his face. “Does that mean he’s an evil ex?”

“Sami Zayn!”

Sami turned to see Miz lifting up his aviators and dumping his coffee to the side. A smug grin came over his face. ‘Well, I was going to wait to fight you later this week, but you’re here. How convenient!” He then briefly cast a nod over to Xavier, loosening his collar as he did. “What’s up, Woods?”

“Nothin’ much, Miz,” Xavier replied. “Just hanging out tonight.”

Sami shot Xavier an incredulous look. “Dude.”

“What? I am.”

Sami just rolled his eyes and then looked back at Miz, his eyes focusing on the now revealed necklace. A spiked design of intersecting lines. Just like the one Sheamus was wearing the night at the Rockit. “Look man, can we hold out just a sec-”

He had barely gotten the words out of his mouth when Miz suckerpunched him right in the mouth. Sami stumbled back, falling right back onto the ground. Sami could see Finn and Bayley moving towards him in his periphery, but it didn’t last long before Miz grabbed him by the ankle. “What the hell are you doIIIIIIIIIIIIIING!”

Before Sami could even finish, Miz picked him up by the ankle and flung Sami towards the furthest most spire of Casa Loma. He felt his breath leave his body in one violently loud huff as his back hit the stone wall before he went careening down onto the set below, landing on a clothed table and snapping it in half. “Ughhhhhhh…”

“What the fuck is even your deal, Mike?” Finn’s voice was a distance away from Sami, but he could hear it travelling closer to him.

“Yeah, you’re married to the hottest woman on the planet and you’re mad about the current boyfriend of someone you dated when you were, like, 12?!” Bayley that time, closer still.

“Hey, I don’t make the rules, Finn and some rando I don’t know,” Miz declared. “You were the first time I ever really knew heartbreak, so if Hunter says kill the new kid, I’m gonna do it.”

“Oh come ON… wait, who did you say?”

Sami began to sat up, his vision focusing on Finn, who was looking at Miz with surprise. Miz turned back to him, a grin on his face. “Oh, you didn’t know? Or did you just suspect and stay in denial?”

“Hey asshole,” Sami hissed as he stood up on wobbly legs. “I’m still alive over here.”

Miz’s body froze before he turned back to Sami with a sigh. “Damn. Guess I didn’t throw you hard enough.”

He grabbed Sami by the shirt and Sami poised himself, ready to fight back, when the two heard a soft “ahem.” Miz’s eyes went wide as he turned to see Maryse standing off to the side, looking impatient. Sami could see that Bayley’s eyes were wide and that the sides of her mouth were twitching to prevent a scream from coming out. “I know this is important to you, love, but the director has asked that you please move this off set.”

Miz smiled genuinely for the first time in the five minutes Sami had been acquainted with him as he walked over and kissed her on the forehead. “Of course, dear. Wish me luck?”

The two kissed before parting. Miz then turned back to Sami with a point. “Meet me by the stairs in five minutes, Zayn.”

As he walked off, Maryse and Sami watched after him for a few seconds before turning back to each other. Maryse tried to give Sami a death glare, but was interrupted with a small “ahem.” She then looked over to see Bayley looking at her, wide eyes and stiff posture. “Hi… um… big fan.”

Maryse just smirked at Bayley and flipped her hair. “Why wouldn’t you be?”

As she walked away, Bayley staggered back, making incomprehensible noises. Sami decided to leave her be and looked over at Finn. “Okay, so your teenage ex is kind of a surprisingly strong asshole. What am I gonna do?”

“I don’t know,” sighed Finn, rubbing his face. “I honestly didn’t know nor expect that. He’s still that American kid taking stupid dares in my head.”

“Yeah, that’s kind of how he got famou- wait…”

“Sami? What are you thinking?”

Sami looked around the set for a second, his eyes focusing on a rolling cart abandoned by a lighting rig. “About how I could outsmart the American dingbat.”

———

“Aw c’mon, what is this?”

Sami sat in the cart as Finn rolled him to the edge of the Baldwin Steps, a hard hat perched on top of his head. “Just making an entrance, bro,” he declared with a shrug before he stepped out of it. “Though, it might also be a proposition.”

Miz sighed as he crossed his arms. “Make it quick. Kinda want to get back to my real job.”

“Well, you used to do those reality shows where you had to take challenges, right? Like, really dumb ones where you put yourself in harms way just to get elimination immunity or to go on a date with some girl named Stacey or whatever…”

“Yeah, and your point? If you _have_ one?”

Sami nodded and cleared his throat. “Well, I have a challenge for you. We could either fight it out and you have to stagger back to set with your pretty face all bruised and bloody, or you could take this cart all the way down the Baldwin Steps.”

“SERIOUSLY,” Miz shouted as he looked down the steps. “There’s like a million steps with 500 twists and turns. You seriously expect me to go down those with a cart and a construction helmet?”

“I mean… yeah…”

Miz looked back at Sami with a glare that could melt ice. “And what happens if I do it?”

“I’ll let you take me out.”

“Sami,” Finn interjected, his face twisting with concern. “You wouldn’t…”

“I have to,” he said calmly, looking back at Finn. “It’s part of the deal with your exes, right? Either I defeat them somehow, or they defeat me. This is how I’m trying this.” He then looked back at Miz. “Unless you’re chicken, of course.”

Miz took a deep breath, an exasperated exhale coming through his nose. “Gimme the goddamn hard hat.”

With a smirk, Sami took it off his head and handed over to Miz. He then placed it on his head and climbed into the cart, taking a deep breath. He then looked over at Sami. “If I lose, you better make sure they don’t recast me with Antonio Cesaro.”

“Uh… I don’t know how I can make that happen, but I’ll try?”

Miz sternly nodded, then held onto the edges of the cart. “Gimme a push, boys.”

Sami and Finn nodded at each other, then pulled the cart back a bit before pushing it with a running start down the steps. As it began to go, Miz let loose a dramatic cry of “FOR FREEDOOOOOOOM!”

At the edge, Sami and Finn watched as the cart went careening down the steps at unnatural speeds, Miz trying his damndest to steer it into the curves. He got to the first landing of stairs, which caused Sami to hold his breath in anticipation and anxiety of a complete run. However, as soon as he turned into the second flight, the cart picked up speed even more. “Oh god…”

“NOOOOOOOOOOO!”

The cart tipped over as it went down the second flight of stairs, sending Miz flying out of it onto the circular landing. However, before he could land, a bright white flash cracked the air around them. As it faded, Miz’s screams were replaced with the sound of coins on pavement. Finn looked down the steps, impressed. “Huh… I guess you did call that one, sweetie.”

“What can I say, ego is a mysterious thing,” he sighed. “Just hate that Maryse has to lose her husband like this.”

“He’s not dead,” Finn stated, starting down the steps. “Neither is Sheamus.”

Sami raised an eyebrow as he followed him. “How do you know that?”

“The flash… It’s more like a summoning tool using subspace. It’s a way to drag someone out of somewhere real quick,” Finn said quietly. “Not commonly used, but it can be done.”

Sami wondered just how the hell Finn knew that for sure, but he just pursed his lips and muttered a small “Huh” before stuffing his hands in his pockets. For the next few minutes, the two were quiet as they went down the steps to the second landing. Sami counted up the coins as Finn looked out at the city over the railing, mumbling the amounts to himself in French.

“How much is there this time,” Finn asked, finally speaking up.

“ _Dix_ … er… ten,” Sami admitted, correcting himself back to English. “Ten dollars and some change. So moving up in the world slightly.”

Sami laughed a little bit as he looked up at Finn from his makeshift seat on the edge of the stone planter. He then sighed as he jingled the change in his hand. “Look… Finn, I’m sorry I’ve been so weird tonight. It’s just…”

“Just what, Sami,” Finn asked, his voice quiet and even. That worried Sami more than if he had sounded angry.

“You may want to sit down for this one.”

Finn looked at Sami with skepticism for a second before taking a seat next to him. “Sitting down now. What’s up?”

Sami took a deep breath, casting his eyes to what he could see of Spadina and the rest of Toronto in front of him. “The reason I’ve been so weird tonight is that I’ve been wanting to tell you something for a bit now, but been too afraid to mention it because I’m not sure how to approach it. I guess you seeing my dreams this morning and getting thrown into the walls of a giant castle by your teenage ex about twenty minutes ago has really put it all in perspective.”

“What are you trying to say, Sami?”

Sami looked back at Finn, taking another deep breath. “Finn, I have an evil ex too. I mean, you’re not going to have to fight him to date me or anything. But he’s there. His name is Kevin. Kevin Owens. He’s the guitarist for a band called The Foreign Objects, who are going to be in town in like two or three weeks. And I very clearly heard his voice in my dream this morning.”

Finn blinked at Sami for a second. “Oh wow…”

“Yeah,” Sami sighed. “I… we… He… We were together for a really long time. Best friends since early high school and dating since our senior year. Practically inseparable. We even went to the same college and started a band. But then before I knew it, after we graduated. It all just started to fall apart. Kevin got mean. Like, he was always kind of mean, but he got mean to me especially. Then I heard around he was starting to see other guys and I got a shitty haircut because I was sad and kind of snapped and then confronted him about it at a New Year’s Party where our old bandmates Matt and Nick were filming a music video and we sort of had a really loud fight where he said I was worthless and that he never loved me and that’s why I ran away from Montreal five years ago and have been so massively fucked up since that I apparently can’t date people or have anyone else cut my hair and I’m real sor-”

Sami’s moment of soul pouring would have continued, but he was cut off by Finn kissing him dead on the lips, his fingers running through his hair. Sami breathed in and closed his eyes, his lips getting caught up in the way Finn’s tasted. His brain seemingly melted away right at that second, taking the anxiety and fear with it. As they broke away, Sami opened his eyes, looking at Finn’s smiling face in a daze. “Well, that was unexpected.”

“Adrian.”

Sami shook himself out of his daze. “Uh… no, I’m Sami.”

Finn laughed a little at that. “No, no, I know that. No, that’s the name of my Kevin.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah, we met not long after I dated Miz. He actually lived in England, but we regularly used to travel to see each other before we decided to live together. He was my everything and things were amazing… until they weren’t. He just grew away from me and I didn’t know how to reach him anymore. He went off to study with some teacher about how to tap into the ways of Veganism, but not before we called it off. I haven’t seen him since, which is so weird to think because I know I could have married him.”

The two went quiet for a second, Sami absorbing the way Finn’s voice faltered in his mind. His heart broke, and he hoped he never had to hear that again or be the cause of it. “Do you think he’s one of the exes,” Sami finally asked.

“It’s possible,” Finn sighed. “But whether he is or isn’t, that isn’t what I’m trying to say. What I’m trying to say is that I understand what it’s like to be so in love with someone that when they’re not in your life anymore for any number of reasons, you feel messed up because of it. So, if you’re going to have to hide from your ex or shave your own head, I will totally understand it. I just want you to be happy.”

He then held Sami’s hand up, kissing his knuckles. Sami felt a warmth in his chest that began to spread to his face. This boy was too good to him. “Well, maybe you could direct me to a barber, at least.”

Finn chuckled a little before standing up. “Well, I can do that, but I’d much rather get dessert with you right now.”

He held his hand out to Sami. Sami smiled at that, taking his hand and standing up, holding up the other hand full of change. “There’s a great gelato place not too far from here. I’ll even pay.”

Another chuckle from Finn. Over the side of the hill, they heard loud music begin for the scene they were filming. Finn took his hand in Sami’s, lacing their fingers together. “I guess they’re moving on without him.”

“Yeah, I guess so,” Sami whispered as he lead Finn back down the steps, the sounds of the set disappearing into the city as he did. “Forget it, Finn. It’s Casa Loma.”

“You’re such a dork.”


	5. Hello Again

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kevin's back, and he's not going quietly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is way shorter than the last, but I'll make up for it with the next two chapters, I promise.

Sami kept a close eye on the calendar as the day until The Foreign Objects were back in town began to grow closer. It made Sami nervous knowing that Kevin was so close to being back around in his orbit, but Bayley and Finn were super understanding of the whole thing. “It’s just one day, Sami,” assured Finn quietly as Sami rested his head in his lap the night before. “He’ll be here just one day and then he’s gone again.”

He took a deep breath as he remembered that advice as he unlocked his door. He had spent the day going around the neighborhood dropping off job applications, partially to get his mind off of Kevin, but also because he had finally been feeling like himself enough to start looking again. It was a good feeling, despite his Kevin nerves. Like maybe things were going to be okay again.

_♪I’m giving you everything/All that joy can bring/This I swear...♪_

Sami sighed as he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. He really had to change the ringtone Bayley set for it ages ago, but then he would have to admit that he didn’t really know how to do that in the first place.

He looked down at the screen. Caller Unknown. Usually, he wouldn’t answer, but job hunting meant that wasn’t as easy as it usually was. Quickly, he swiped the green button on the screen as he closed the door. “Sami Zayn’s phone. Sami speaking.”

“Hi Sami.”

Sami felt an icy chill that began in his right ear and then quickly spread down his body. That was a voice he hadn’t heard outside of his dreams in a long time. One that he had hoped to never hear again. “Kevin.”

“You sound nervous,” Kevin intoned.

“I… I think I have reason to be.”

“Hm, Sure. I guess. How long has it been again?”

Sami took a deep breath as he felt his insides seize up. He wanted to hang up or scream at Kevin, but his body wouldn’t let him. “Five years.”

“Oh, that is a long time,” Kevin sighed, “but I guess you never forgot things so easily.”

“What do you want, Kevin,” Sami asked, teeth gritting with the desperate hope this conversation would be over soon.

“Relax Sami. I just wanted to try and catch up a bit before I came back into Toronto. How have you been?”

 _Miserable for the first two years, okay for the past three, amazing in the past two months,_ Sami thought. “Fine,” he actually answered.

“Just _fine,_ ” Kevin asked, his voice somehow skeptical and accusatory at the same time. “C’mon man. No exciting new bands or boyfriends? Didn’t you used to tell me everything?”

Sami wanted to die at the way Kevin was trying to pry him open like this. _Don’t tell him a damn thing_ , he thought. “Well, there is a boyfriend.”

_Damn._

“Really? What’s his name? Should I be _jealous?”_

 _Stop talking to him._ “His name is Finn.”

“Oh.”

Sami felt his heart stop in his chest. “‘Oh’ what?”

“Nothing,” Kevin answered. Sami couldn’t see him, but he knew Kevin had to be shaking his head. “Look, I gotta go. If you want to come to the show in a couple of days, there will be tickets for you and _Finn_ at the door. Bye.”

Before Sami could respond, Kevin hung up and the phone beeped. Immediately, Sami fell onto the floor, trying to catch a breath he felt like he’d been holding in for a million years.

 

———

“Sami! Jesus, are you okay?”

Sami woke up at the sound of Bayley’s computer bag hitting the floor as she knelt by him. He didn’t even realize he had passed out. From the way his eyes stung as he opened them, he wondered if he had been crying too. “I… uh…”

“Was it an Evil Ex? Do you need help up?”

“No… Kevin… He called.”

A silence fell between them as Bayley gently put her hand on Sami’s back. “Shit.”

“Yeah.”

“Do you want me to call Finn?”

“No.”

“Do you just want to lay on the floor a bit longer?”

“Yeah.”

“Okay.”

Sami felt the floor shift under him a little as Bayley sat down next to him, not saying another word. He did appreciate the company, but he wished it didn’t involve him lying face first in their carpet.

 

———

“So he just… called?”

Sami looked over at Finn as they walked up the street towards the Second Cup, holding his hand a little bit tighter as they did. He knew Finn’s days off were precious to him, and he was glad he was willing to spend it with him after everything that had gone down the night before. “Yeah, didn’t have caller ID or anything. I’m not even certain how he got my number. But I heard his voice and it was like every part of my body came to a screeching halt.”

Finn pursed his lips and took a deep breath. “I’m gonna kill him.”

“No, don’t do that.”

“I mean, I could,” Finn teased, stopping to kiss Sami on the cheek.

“Yeah, you could,” Sami mused, taking in the kiss. “But I’m sure someone out there would miss him.”

They resumed their walk, rounding the corner towards the shop. Finn sighed as he let go of Sami’s hand to open the door for him. “For a man who has trounced two of my exes so far, you are certainly very kind to yours.”

Sami shrugged as he walked in the door, looking at Finn. “I mean, I don’t necessarily want to beat up your exes. Plus, Kevin may be a dick, but it doesn’t mean I have to b- SHIT.”

Sami froze in the doorway, which caused Finn to turn inside and look. By the counter, there was a man about their height with a stocky build staring right into Sami. He reminded Finn of a bear, which Sami had mentioned before about his ex. Plus, from the way Enzo and Cass were behind the counter glaring right at him, it was easy to make a guess. “Is that…”

“Kevin, yeah,” Sami said in a dropped whisper, not taking his eyes off of Kevin. Finn looked between the two of them for a second before he looked back at Sami. “I’m gonna… excuse me…”

Finn snuck back behind Sami and out of the shop, a bell ringing behind him. Kevin’s eyes traced his path before he looked back up at Sami. “Okay, I’m jealous.”

Sami couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “YOU’RE jealous? You broke up with me.”

“I think I’m allowed, Sami,” Kevin said, scratching his nose with a slight smile. “And not even a how are you after seeing me for the first time in five years? God, you just can’t seem to let it go, huh?”

“I think the fact I live in a whole other province now and have actively avoided your band for five years answers your question, Kev.”

“Unfortunate, but I guess you needed a city like you.” Kevin sighed as he picked up a drink from the counter behind him. “I’ll see you at the show, Sami.”

“Not on your life,” Sami hissed as Kevin walked by him to the door.

Kevin just smirked. “That’s what they all say.”

Before Sami could say anything else to him, he whisked out the door and down the street. Sami watched carefully as he bypassed Finn, giving him another glance before disappearing out of sight. As Finn walked back into the shop, Sami let out a sigh. He had been holding his breath way too much in the past twenty four hours. “Shit…”

“You gonna be okay over there,” Cass asked behind them. Sami turned and nodded, though still feeling uneasy on the inside. Cass nodded back before looking over at Enzo. “Hey ‘Zo, get their usuals ready.”

Quickly, Enzo got to work as Sami sat down at a nearby table, taking his hat off and holding his head in his hands. Finn sat across from him, looking concerned. “Are you really going to be okay?”

“I don’t know,” Sami groaned as he laid his head down on the table. “I really didn’t expect that particular reunion to happen in my local coffee shop in front of my friends and my boyfriend, y’know?”

Before Finn could say anything else, Enzo came over with their drinks, placing them quietly on the table. “Hey, this one’s on me today, buddy.”

Sami looked up, suddenly feeling worse than before. “Enzo, no, I couldn’t…”

“I ain’t trying to treat you like a charity case, Zayn. Just… That was rough, and this is the least I can do.”

Sami nodded and muttered his thanks to Enzo. As he walked away, Sami sighed again. “You know I’m not always this much of a mess, right?”

“I’ve been dating you for two months, Sami,” Finn said as he took a sip of his drink. “I know very well by now that you’re not.”

Sami took a sip of his drink, feeling less excited about it now than he was a few minutes before. “Was it this awkward with you and Adrian?”

Finn paused as he placed the paper cup back on the table. “I mean, I haven’t seen Adrian in almost a decade, so I wouldn’t know.”

“Oh… right… sorry. I forgot.” It was easy to forget that Finn was actually a few years older than him. Not in the weird ‘Edge of Seventeen’ way, but in the way that the few muddled details of Finn’s past that he knew so far were like a few bumps higher on their concurrent timelines. Sami tried not to push the issue. It would be massively hypocritical of him if he did. Still, he wondered sometimes. He wasn’t even 100% certain of Finn’s actual age.

“No no, it’s fine,” Finn said quietly as he traced his thumb against the rim of the lid. “I imagine it would be weird though. You don’t spend that long being practically bound to each other without it being weird when you come back together again. God, that man punched a hole in the moon for me… I think I would have reacted the same as you.”

“You think so?”

“Well, let’s hope I don’t have to test that theory.”

“I mean, he could be an ex.”

Finn paused again, tapping his thumb nervously against the cup. “The thought has occurred, yes.”

Sami looked down at his cup awkwardly, taking a small sip. He hoped he didn’t have to encounter someone who… what was it? “I’m sorry, did you say he punched a hole in the moon?”

“Yeah. How do you think that one crater showed up like fifteen years ago?”

“Okay, I don’t want to talk about this anymore.”

Finn chuckled awkwardly, then apologized as he scratched his beard. “I guess this coffee date got all sorts of weird, huh?”

“And it’s probably about to get weirder,” Sami said as he looked over at the counter to see Cass surreptitiously texting. “If I had to guess, he’s filling Carmella in on what’s going on right now, which means Carmella is going to be simultaneously texting Bayley, which means…”

_♪I’m giving you everything/All that joy can bring/This I swear...♪_

As if on cue, Sami’s phone began ringing, the same Spice Girls song emanating from his phone and a selfie of Bayley dressed as Jem from _Jem and the Holograms_ filling the screen. He almost had to laugh at the absurdity of it all. “Thanks Cass!”

“Sorry Sami! Didn’t think she’d text Bayley THAT quickly!”

“Do you want to answer it,” Finn asked, looking a bit concerned.

“To be honest, I don’t really want to deal with Bayley right now,” Sami said as he pressed the button to ignore the call. “I don’t want to go back to my place. I don’t want twenty questions about me and Kevin. I just want to spend time with my boyfriend…”

“Well, how ‘bout we go back to my place then,” Finn responded with an earnest smile.

Sami raised an eyebrow at that. “And do what?”

“Whatever you feel like.”

 

———

The frames on the wall rattled as Sami pushed Finn against the wall, kissing him with ferocity. “Watch the art,” Finn muttered between breaths.

“Sorry,” Sami breathed as he pulled away for a few seconds, backing Finn up from the wall.

“No no, I like this,” Finn whispered as he laced his fingers behind Sami’s neck. “When I said whatever you feel like, I wasn’t expecting this. But I like it. Just… don’t break my stuff, okay?”

Sami smirked as he kissed Finn again, backing him up towards his bedroom. He wasn’t expecting to feel like this either. Maybe it was because he was frustrated and wanted to get it out. Maybe because Finn was just so delectable that it was a damn shame that Sami had been too caught in his own head to do anything about it. His mind was racing with all the dirty things he wanted to do to him…

But his mind kept landing back in one place.

“Sami?”

Sami focused back, realizing he was sitting on Finn’s bed. Finn sat above him, straddling his lap. However, it was less sexy and more concerned as Finn looked down at Sami. “Sami, are you okay?”

“Yeah… I just… My brain keeps…”

“Kevin?”

“Yeah.”

Finn sighed as he cradled Sami’s head against his chest. “I’m gonna kill him.”

Sami matched Finn’s sigh as he wrapped his arms around Finn’s waist. “Yeah, I know.”

 

———

“So you went through all that and you DIDN’T bang him?”

Sami groaned as he furiously scrubbed dishes in the sink. “Way to miss the point of the story, Sasha.”

“I don’t think I did,” she pouted.

“Sami, you got a serious case of the Yips,” Carmella mused as she sat in the recliner, her legs swinging off the side as she filed her nails.

Sami stopped scrubbing in order to look over at Carmella skeptically. _“What does that even mean?”_

“It’s a baseball thing, y’know,” she said, looking up at Sami. She began to gesture with the file. “It’s like when you’re so in your own head, you get performance anxiety.

“Did you just compare my sex life to baseball?”

“Carmella has a point,” Bayley said, emerging from the bathroom and beelining through the kitchen to sit with Sasha on the mattress. “Kevin has been occupying space in your head for five years and he’s messing up your chances of getting intimate with that hunk that is your boyfriend.”

Carmella, Sasha and Sami all shot her confused looks, which she just shrugged at. “What? I can aesthetically appreciate him. Still, my point stands. Your ex is causing you to cockblock yourself.”

Sami took a deep breath and mulled over it. Bayley did have a point. He had spent so long having Kevin in the back of his head that having him there in person was making it worse. Plus, now he was spending his date day angrily washing dishes instead of being with Finn. “No… you’re right. I need to get him out of my head. Starting now, I will think of Kevin Owens no more!”

_♪I’m giving you everything/All that joy can bring/This I swear...♪_

Everyone turned to look at Sami’s phone, the tension in the room growing. “You ready to test that theory,” Sasha asked.

Sami reached over to pick his phone up from the counter. A picture of Seth Rollins dressed as Oscar The Grouch filled the screen. “Chill out everyone, it’s Seth.”

As a sigh filled the room, Sami swiped to answer his phone. “What’s up, Seth Rollins?”

“Hey Saaaami,” Seth said, his voice sounding uneasy. “Can you come over real quick? I have something I need to run by you.”

Sami blinked at his phone, a feeling of skepticism and anxiety flaring up in his chest. “You can’t tell me over the phone?”

“Yooooooou might want to be here in person for this…”

 

———

“YOU DID WHAT?!”

Seth, Dean and Roman all lurched back from Sami, not used to him screaming. Dean and Roman looked over at Seth, who cleared his throat and stood up a little straighter. “Look, man. I’m sorry, but when the Foreign Objects offers you a gig, you can’t say no.”

“You can when _my ex is in the band,_ Seth Rollins,” Sami shouted. “And not an ex like Roman and Tyler or you and Marek. Like actual really horrible ex who hates me and wants to make my life terrible.”

“Told you this was a bad idea,” Dean muttered under his breath.

“Can it, Dean,” Seth hissed. He then turned back to Sami. “Look, a gig is a gig is a gig. This is big for us. Can you just set this aside for the band?”

Sami took a deep breath as he rubbed his face. This couldn’t be happening. This was a nightmare dimension, right? “Can I just… process this for a few minutes?”

“Yeah, that’s f-”

“Thanks,” Sami interrupted, turning around and out the door. With a firm click of the door behind him, he trodded down the porch steps and onto the sidewalk in front of the house. He sat himself down on the sidewalk, feeling himself shake as he took out his phone and dialed Finn’s number.

“Sami?”

Sami couldn’t help but smile a little at the way Finn said his name, even when it felt like everything was falling apart. “Hi… I know it was weird earlier, but can I see you right now? My band is full of awful people.”

“I could tell you that, but sure,” Finn said softly. Sami could hear him picking up his bag. “Where are you?”

“Seth’s place.”

“I’ll be there in a minute.”

Before Sami could say anything, Finn hung up his phone. Sami quickly pocketed his phone and took a deep breath. “One… two…”

He wasn’t even to ten yet when a breeze came over the block and a door appeared out of the corner of Sami’s eye. White with a black star on it. The door open and Finn stepped out, removing his goggles as he did. “Hey you,” Sami croaked out as Finn walked over to him.

“Hey yourself,” Finn said with a slight smile as he sat down on the curb next to him. “What’s up with you?”

“Everything since this afternoon, apparently,” he groaned.

“Tell me about it?”

“You really want to hear it?”

“I’m here, aren’t I?”

“Fair enough.”

Quickly, Sami went over everything. From Carmella’s statement about The Yips to pledging he wasn’t going to think about Kevin anymore to the giant bombshell Seth just dropped on him a few minutes before. All the while, Finn looked over at Sami, nodding intently with his fast and furious words.

Finally, Sami finished and looked over at Finn. “So… what the hell do I do?”

“Okay, can we go back to the whole Yips thing for a second though?”

“Fiiiiinn!”

“Sorry, just trying to lighten the mood a little,” he said with a slight chuckle. Sami did laugh at that a little, which gave Finn the window to broach the hard topic. “Still, opening for your ex. That’s…. That’s not an easy thing to do.”

“You’re telling me,” Sami muttered, nervously scratching the back of his head. “And the thing is, I know where Seth is coming from. This is an absolutely huge opportunity for the band, but interacting more with Kevin sounds like a fucking nightmare and it feels like Seth Rollins didn’t consider me at all.”

“Well, he’s a lead singer,” Finn sighed. “What did you expect?”

Sami looked down at his sneakers, then back at Finn. “What would you do, then? If you were me and it was… I don’t know… Adrian. Would you do it?”

“If it were me?”

“Yeah.”

Finn took a deep breath and looked away from Sami for a second, rubbing at his own beard as he lost himself in thought for a minute. “Honestly? I’d probably do it.”

Sami’s eyebrows raised at the response. “Really?”

“Yeah,” Finn mused. “I knew it wouldn’t be easy, and it would hurt a lot, but showing up is a better way of showing someone they have no power over you than hiding. And from the sound of it, Kevin is trying to goad you because he thinks you will hide.”

“I mean, I did run away to a whole ‘nother province to get away with him,” Sami muttered as he leaned his head on Finn’s shoulder.

“So why give him the satisfaction of being right?”

Sami perked up, looking over at Finn with a determined glance. “Yeah… You’re right! He’s been fucking with my head long enough! It’s time to put up a fight. Or at least show him I’m not afraid of him. Or pretend that I’m not.”

“Fake it till you make it, right,” Finn asked, a grin starting to dance across his face.

“Right,” Sami whispered as he leaned in towards Finn, placing his hand gently on his cheek and kissing him on the lips. “Thanks, _habibi.”_

“What does that mean,” Finn asked with his dreamiest smile.

“It means… uhhhh… ‘sweetheart,’” Sami mumbled, his face turning red as he jumped up and turned back towards the house. The word just slipped out and he wasn’t about to explain what it really meant. As he walked towards the steps, he shouted, “HEY SETH ROLLINS! I’M IN!”

“YES! Knew you’d come around,” Seth retorted from the doorway.

Sami froze, giving Seth the most incredulous look. “Wait, what does that mean?”

Seth then laughed awkwardly. Behind him, Roman just shook his head and Dean rolled his eyes. That was never a good sign between the three of them.

Sami just sighed for the umpteenth time in twelve hours. It was going to be a long two days.


	6. Call Off Your Ghosts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's the night of the gig and Sami's wanting to fly under the radar. However, things are never that easy when there are exes involved.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The angst roller coaster of Kevin ends after this chapter! Huzzah! It gets real fun after this.

“Check one two… I hate this, I really hate this… two one… Check…”

Seth shot Sami a dirty look as they sound checked at Lee’s Palace for the gig. Sami just shrugged as he looked out over the empty room, plucking out the first few notes of ‘Launchpad McQuack’ to check his levels. Sami had agreed to be here, yes, but he didn’t have to like it.

_Get the gig done. Stay for a song or two to be polite. Spend the rest of the night at Pizza Pizza until we need to unload._

Sami ran over that plan in his head for the millionth time as Dean did the check for the drums behind him. He wanted minimal contact with Kevin, this much was true. He just needed to be here enough to play the gig and show his brave face before Kevin went off to the next town. That would be enough. It had to be enough.

“HELLOOOOO EVERYONE!”

The soundcheck stopped as two women walked in, holding paper coffee cups in their hands. The shorter one with ghostly pale skin lifted her sunglasses. “You guys are The Shield, right?”

Sami saw Seth stand a little straighter in her presence and tried his best not to roll his eyes. Seth had such a _type_ when it came to women. “Yeah, that’s us,” Seth answered, pitching his voice down slightly. “Hi, I’m Seth.”

“Paige,” she said, holding her hand out to him from the floor in front of the stage. “I’m the lead singer of the Foreign Objects. This is Foxy, our drummer.”

The taller of the two of them draped herself over Paige, looking up at Seth. “I’m only Foxy on stage. Here, I’m Alicia.”

“Well, it’s so nice to meet you both,” Seth said, laying the charm on as thick as possible. Sami was fairly certain he heard Dean start gagging behind them.

As the two went around to the rest of the band, Sami started to unplug and hope the conversation would be short as Paige walked over to him. “So you’re Sami, right?”

“Yeah, I’m Sami.”

“I’ve heard a lot about you,” she mused, shaking his hand. “Kevin’s been talking a lot about you as this gig has gotten closer. Like he was excited to see you or something.”

“I doubt that,” Sami sighed. “Our relationship didn’t really end on the best of terms, to put it lightly.”

“Not surprising,” she muttered through clenched teeth. “Kevin can be kind of a dick sometimes. Hoping him hanging out with our new bassist will take the edge off some.”

Sami raised his eyebrows at that last statement. “What? He’s dating again?”

Paige shrugged, giving Sami her best half-hearted smile. “Hell if I know. Neville doesn’t really seem like his type, but I know I’m wrong most of the time too. Still, hope he doesn’t give you too much trouble tonight.”

“Thanks,” Sami muttered. He actually kind of liked her, despite her connections to his ex. Perhaps she would be right for once and Kevin would leave him alone.

Still, Kevin was maybe dating again?

“So you’re the ex, huh?”

Sami was taken out of his thoughts by Alicia looking him right in the eye. He sighed. It was already the longest night of his life and it was barely 5 p.m. “Yeah, I’m the ex.”

———

Sami had been on high alert, waiting for Kevin and his new potential boyfriend to show up. He had at least expected them during The Foreign Objects soundcheck, but it had just been Paige, Alicia and a couple of roadies subbing in for them. Paige shot Sami a knowing look and a shrug as the makeshift band proceeded through a somewhat deconstructed version of their opening song. Sami didn’t know why he was surprised.

“Well, don’t you clean up nice, Zayn?”

Sami turned and looked at Dean, then back to the mirror in the green room. Seth had practically begged the other three to dress “nicer” for the night. Sami had approximately one suit that stayed buried in the back of his closet, but like hell he was busting the full thing out. Suit jackets though? “I doubt tossing a suit jacket on over a t-shirt really counts as cleaning up, but thanks Dean.”

Dean smirked as he looked in the mirror and straightened out his collar. Sami wasn’t certain if he actually did anything at all. “Well, if all else fails, I’m certain your boyfriend will dig it.”

“You think so?”

“Well, he seems like the type who digs everything you do. Unlike the skeezeball who can’t even show up to soundcheck.”

Sami pursed his lips and scratched at his beard as Dean turned away from the mirror. He looked Sami in the eye, his face growing sympathetic. “Look, I’m sorry about this. Me and Roman were on your side, but Seth was convinced it was a thing we should do.”

“It’s fine, Dean,” Sami said. “I know you two aren’t out to get me. Hell, neither is Seth for the most part. I just… I just might want to be left alone for the most part tonight.”

“You got it, Zayn.”

Dean then clapped Sami on the shoulder before wandering out of the green room. Sami sighed and checked the clock on the wall. 7:05. 25 minutes to doors. 

He could do this.

...Right?

———

“Well that sucked,” Seth declared as they walked off stage.

“Oh c’mon, it wasn’t all that bad,” Roman kindly insisted. “We had some people cheering for us.”

“Yeah. All of Sami’s friends,” Dean concluded as he started popping open all the buttons of his shirt. “At least they justified me sweating through my only nice shirt.”

Sami smiled to himself a little as he took up the rear, lugging his bass off stage. For as rough as this day had been, at least his friends were there for him. He wondered how much that bothered Seth, who had spent all night online trying to get people to come out to the show.

“Good show, boys.”

The four of them turned to see a man standing in the shadows off stage. Sami couldn’t make his face out too much, but he could tell the man was a bit short compared to them and his accent fell in the range of British, but was drastically different from Paige’s. “Uhh… thanks, bro.”

A soft dismissive noise came out of his mouth before he turned away back towards the green room. In the light, Sami could make out his long dark hair and, for a second, an apparent flash of silver from around his neck. Sami rubbed out his eyes. No… he was hallucinating that. He had to be.

“Well that was fucking weird,” Dean stated as he finished taking his shirt off. 

“You’re telling me,” Sami muttered as he stepped off the stairs.

———

“Congratulations, you survived the gig!”

Sami smiled a bit as Bayley rushed to hug him, catching her in his arms as he did. “Yeah, I certainly did.”

He looked over at Finn, who was sitting at the bar and looking over at him expectantly. Enzo sat next to him, gabbing on about something. Sami then set Bayley down. “Do you mind if I go talk to my boyfriend for a bit after that?”

“Not at all. I think Sasha wants to get a good spot for the show anyway.”

Sami shot a look over at Sasha. “Seriously?!”

Sasha looked up from her drink, surprised. “What? Paige is cute.”

“I think you’ll have to fight Seth for her.”

“I can take him.”

“Yeah, you can.”

Sami then broke away from Bayley and headed over to Finn. As Enzo scooted away, Finn shot Sami a smile as he turned his stool out towards him and held up a glass for him. “Figured you earned this Dr. Pepper.”

“Thank you, sweetie. The drink tickets don’t cover non-alcoholic drinks.”

“So what did you do with them?”

“Gave them to Dean.”

Sami sat in Enzo’s old seat and groaned. “Can I just go home already?”

“What’s stopping you,” Finn asked, turning towards Sami and taking a sip of his beer.

“Load out. Plus, I at least want to be polite to Paige and Alicia. They were actually really nice.” Sami then took a sip of his soda, taking a deep breath. “I actually haven’t seen Kevin at all today, thankfully.”

Finn raised an eyebrow. “Really? I figured he’d be here bright and early to be a tit.”

“Yeah well, so did I. I didn’t see him or their bassist, who might also be Kevin’s new boyfriend.”

Finn gasped jokingly before dropping his voice into a stage whisper. “The plot thickens.”

“Right,” Sami said as he took another sip. “I mean, I don’t care who he dates or not dates at this point, but why be so secret about it?”

“Maybe he thinks you’ll be jealous.”

“I don’t know,” Sami said, leaning in towards Finn. “I think I did pretty well for myself.”

He then kissed Finn on the cheek about five times in rapid succession, causing Finn to dissolve into giggles as he did. “Stooop. That tickles.”

Before Sami could torture his boyfriend with more affection, the lights dipped and the crowd went wild. A low humming noise came from the overhead speakers as the band walked on stage in the dark. Sami could make out the shapes of Kevin and Alicia in the dark, but had no idea about the mystery one to his left. The lights then came up to a dark blue as Alicia rolled the cymbals and the mystery bassist strummed out a low note in time with Kevin’s guitar. Slowly, Paige strode out on stage, wearing strappy heels up to her knees and a black minidress. She looked like a lead singer.

“Hello, we are the Foreign Objects. And you probably know this one…”

As the song started up with Kevin’s bouncy and aggressive guitar, the lights came up on the stage, giving Sami his first good look at Kevin for the day. He seemed a bit more dressed down than the rest of the band, but Sami expected that.

“Uh… Sami… who did you say their bassist was?”

Sami blinked out of his spell to look over at Finn, who was staring at the bassist with wide eyes. That wasn’t a good sign. “Uh… I didn’t. Paige said his name is Neville.”

He then looked over at Neville, who was strumming away on bass. He was shorter and well built, with long dark hair and pointed features. He wore black jeans and a white shirt, which nearly made him match with Paige. And on his neck, a flash of silver caught the light. Was he…

“That’s Adrian,” Finn declared.

“WHAT?!”

 _Hello again, friend of a friend,_ sang Paige, opening the song.

Finn turned back towards the bar, burying his head in his arms. “Neville is his last name. Oh god… How… How did he…”

Sami looked back towards the stage as Paige crooned about common goals. His eyes focused on Neville, who seemed to be smirking in his direction. There was no way he could see him, right?

On his neck, the flash of silver revealed itself to be the same necklace of intersecting lines that Sheamus and the Miz had been wearing. The symbol of the League. He grit his teeth as he turned back towards Finn. “Kevin, that fucker. He did this on purpose. He wanted to trap me.”

Finn said nothing, keeping his head down on the bar and shivering a little. Sami pursed his lips and put his arm around Finn, staying quiet. He was not ready for the two of them to endure a storm like this tonight.

———

“What do you want to do, Sami?”

Sami bit the inside of his cheek as he and Finn walked back inside the club after loading out. The night after that had been a lot of stunned silence and keeping heads down as they loaded equipment back into Roman’s hatchback. “You two look live you’ve seen ghosts,” Roman mused as he pushed the hatch closed.

He didn’t even know the half of it.

Sami looked over at Paige and Alicia, who were doing a meet and greet with some teenage fans by the merch booth. “Look, I know I have to fight him, but let’s get out of here before we get spotted. I don’t want anyone getting hurt tonight.”

Finn nodded, his eyes still appearing on the verge of tears. That was the other reason to get out of here for Sami. He didn’t want to see Finn hurting like this. “Are we loaded out then?”

“I think so,” Sami said, leaning over and kissing Finn on the head. “I just need to do a quick idiot check of the green room. Won’t be long.”

Before Finn could say anything else, Sami quickly dashed off in the direction of the backstage, keeping his face hidden under his cap as he did. This would be in and out. No problem.

He snuck into the green room and quickly surveyed the part of the room they had stashed their instruments. Just a bunch of trash for the most part. However, Sami did catch himself groaning when he saw the case for Seth’s microphone had been left behind. Sami was certain that had been nearly left behind in almost every bar in Toronto. “Seth, I swear…”

“And what do YOU think you’re doing?”

Sami froze as he picked up the case. _Kevin._ “Look, Kev, I don’t want any trouble. I’m just grabbing Seth’s microphone and leaving.”

“Can’t let you do that, Sami,” another voice said. Accented. British.

Sami turned to see Kevin standing in the doorway with Neville. Neville had a satisfied grin on his face as he eyed Sami. The necklace around his neck practically seared into Sami’s vision and made his heart race with his impending doom. “Seriously? This is who Finn has shacked up with?”

“I know, pathetic right,” Kevin asked with a laugh. “I mean, I can’t speak to your ex, but I know mine is.”

“I know you set me up, Kev,” Sami stated, his fingers tightening around the microphone case. “You just wanted to get me here so Neville and I would fight.”

Kevin and Neville looked at each other, then sort of shrugged. “To be fair, I was already making plans to fight you when we got here,” Neville mused, his accented voice rumbling in his throat.

“But you know, he tells me that he’s in a league of Evil Exes and they’re all gunning for you,” Kevin added with a mischievous grin. “Well then, I just can’t help but help.”

The tension in the air grew as Sami shifted his focus between Neville and Kevin. The door was blocked, and Neville could apparently punch a hole in the moon. This was not going to end well. “Okay, before we fight, can you at least answer me one thing?”

Neville rolled his eyes. “What is it?”

“So are you two dating or naaah?”

Neville lunged at Sami, giving Sami an opening to throw the hard case at him. Neville deflected the case with a swipe of his hand, then focused in on Sami. Suddenly, Sami felt his breath constrict and his feet lift off the ground as Neville’s eyes glowed white. “Te-te-tel…”

“Yes, telekinetic powers,” Kevin interjected. “Save your breath, Sami. Turns out being vegan makes you better than everyone el-”

Suddenly, Kevin was cut off as he was knocked to the side by a large object. Neville’s concentration broke, causing Sami to collapse to the floor and catch his breath. “Well hello there, Finn,” Neville purred.

Sami looked up to see Finn standing in the doorway, a giant hammer in his hands. +2 against Canadians, if he had to wager a guess. “Telling people you’re vegan now? Without doing any of the actual work? Really?”

“You haven’t been there, Finn,” Neville huffed. “You’ve been travelling around the world, breaking hearts. You don’t know what my life has been like! How can you sit there and tell me who I am?”

“Yeah, well, could say the same for you, Adrian.”

“ _Tch. _Typical. Besides, they’re not vegan powers. They’re vegan-adjacent powers, which you would learn if you would let me explain anything.”__

__“Why should I when you’re _trying to kill my boyfriend?”__ _

__Neville opened his mouth to speak again, but was cut off by a groan from Kevin as he sat back up. “Hey guys, real productive argument you’re having here, but can you just shut the fuck up?”_ _

__“No please, keep talking,” Sami said with a smirk. “Really am trying to delay my inevitable death here.”_ _

__Kevin, Finn and Neville all shot a look at Sami, who just shrugged as he stood back up. “What? Not the time for it?”_ _

__Neville just rolled his eyes before they sparked up with a glow again. He threw a kinetic blast at Sami. He scrambled and ducked as it flew over his head and left a smoldering crater in the wall. “Okay, okay,” Sami muttered._ _

__“Hold on, Sami,” shouted Finn. He took a swing at Neville, but was suddenly pushed out of the way by Kevin. His hammer went flying out of his hand, crashing through the opposite wall and out into the hallway. “Okay, don’t.”_ _

__Sami jumped up and slid past Kevin and Neville, grabbing Finn’s hand and pulling him up. “C’mon!”_ _

__As Finn scrambled behind Sami out into the hall, the hole in the wall grew larger as Neville blasted through it. He flew straight at Sami, knocking him across the floor covered in plastic cups. Finn reached out for him, but was grabbed by Kevin. “I don’t think so, buddy!”_ _

__“ARE YOU SERIOUS RIGHT NOW?!”_ _

__Sami looked up from his spot on the floor to see Paige peeking out from behind the merch stand before Alicia pushed her head back under. “Get out of here, guys,” he shouted, motioning towards the door._ _

__He kipped-up and began running towards them to try and help them, but was stopped by Neville holding him in suspension. “Oh c’mon, really?”_ _

__“They’re adults. They can help themselves,” Neville mused as he pulled Sami in closer. “You on the other hand?”_ _

__He slugged Sami across the face, knocking him back towards the stage and causing him to hit it with a hard *THUNK.* “You’re helping everyone else but yourself right now.”_ _

__“SAMI!”_ _

__Sami looked up to see Finn struggling against Kevin’s hold on him. Kevin held tighter, which only caused Finn to start elbowing him, each blow more vicious than the last. As Kevin let go, Finn began running towards Sami, only to be blocked off by one of Neville’s psychic walls. “Stay out of this, Finn!”_ _

__“Back of the knees,” Sami shouted as he stood up again. “Kevin’s weak point is the back of his knees.”_ _

__“How do you…”_ _

__“I spent a lot of time making out with him, okay?”_ _

__Finn just made an ‘oh’ noise with his mouth before he got pulled away by Kevin again. With one last scream of rage from Finn, Sami turned back to Neville. “Just you and me, huh?”_ _

__“Looks that way…”_ _

__“Is there anyway we can get out of this without you killing me or me doing… whatever actually happens to you guys when you lose?”_ _

__“I’m on strict orders here. Which is a shame. You actually seem like a decent fellow.”_ _

__Sami sighed and shrugged. “I guess we’re doing this.”_ _

__Before Neville could say anything else, Sami went running at him, tackling him to the ground. He managed to punch him across the face a few times before Neville pushed him off with a psychic blast, knocking him back into the air. Sami flipped, letting himself roll into a tumble across the floor before bouncing back to two feet. He jumped up towards Neville, going for a kick, but was met with a kick of Neville’s own. Sami fell over, but not before grabbing Neville’s arm and dragging him down hard with him. Quickly, he wrapped both of his arms and a leg around Neville’s neck and arm, holding him down. Maybe if he was lucky, he could at least break his concentration. Give himself space before he got hit with another blast from Neville. He was persistent though, already trying to wriggle through the hold._ _

__Meanwhile, Kevin and Finn were trapped in their own back and forth, exchanging vicious blows across the other half of the club floor. “Is that all you got,” Kevin yelled at Finn. “You’re just as pathetic as your dumb boyf-”_ _

__As the words came out of Kevin’s mouth, Finn turned and dropped him with a pele kick, causing Kevin to stagger back towards the wall. Finn rushed at him to hit him with a clothesline, knocking him back down to the ground. He ran back to grab his hammer, hefting it up as Kevin stood back up. “C’mon Kev, I’m just getting started.”_ _

__He rushed at Kevin and swung the hammer down, but was quickly met with a swift blocking kick from Kevin that sent vibrations down his arms before knocking him back over onto the floor. With a satisfied laugh, Kevin staggered over to Finn. “Sure… your boyfriend could beat Neville, but I think I’m beating you today.” He then crossed his legs across Finn before dropping to his knees and preparing to hit Finn in the face. “Any last words, loverboy?”_ _

__“Yeah,” Finn drawled. “Back of the knees, right?”_ _

__“Wha-aaaaaah…”_ _

__Before Kevin could finish, Finn raised his hands up quickly to touch the back of Kevin’s knees. Not aggressively, but enough to cause a muted moan to come from Kevin’s mouth as he fell over on top of Finn. “You okay there, Kevin?”_ _

__“I hate you,” he mumbled, his brain still in a haze._ _

__With some grunting, Finn pushed Kevin off of him, letting him roll onto the ground into a fetal position. He staggered up in time to see Neville breaking out of Sami’s koji clutch. “Oh god.”_ _

__Sami rolled as Neville broke out, letting himself kip up again. Neville’s eyes began to glow even brighter as he began floating above the ground again. Sami closed his eyes and braced for impact._ _

__“S-s-sami…”_ _

__Sami opened his eyes to see Neville holding Finn in the air, grasping at his throat. The hammer slipped out of his other hand, hitting the floor with a heavy clatter. Sami reached out for him, but felt himself stopped by Neville. “I could do it, y’know… Kill him and cut out the middlemen here.”_ _

__“Please don’t,” Sami said, his voice a raw whisper as his eyes stung with tears. “I know you have every reason to want to do this, but I’ll do anything. Face you in a bass battle, have a free for all through Honest Ed’s, anything… Just... don’t hurt him…”_ _

__“Do you surrender then?”_ _

__Sami paused, feeling a sudden weight on his soul. He didn’t want it to end like this. Especially surrounded by empty drink cups in Lee’s Palace. However, he looked over at Finn, struggling against Neville’s hold. He thought of his laugh, the way he looked at him whenever he was goofing around on bass, the way he smiled over his tea, the quiet way he said comforting words while Sami drifted off to sleep..._ _

__Sami could imagine a world without himself, but he couldn’t imagine a world without Finn._ _

__Slowly, Sami dropped down to one knee and held his arms out. “I surrender, Neville. Just put him down, please.”_ _

__Neville considered it for a second before sighing and releasing his grip. Finn dropped down to the floor hard, coughing as he caught his breath again. “Sami, no,” he gasped._ _

__“It’s okay, Finn,” Sami whispered as Neville began to glow with white energy. “I’m going to be fi-”_ _

__“ADRIAN NEVILLE!”_ _

__Suddenly, Neville stopped glowing as the door of Lee’s Palace swung open. In through the door stomped a short bearded man followed by an extra tall man in a mask. The short man was dressed like a lumberjack, and looked furious as hell. Neville seemed to freeze as he saw him. “Sensei Daniel!”_ _

__“Don’t ‘Sensei Daniel’ me! First of all, we’ve gone over how inappropriate that is. Second of all, I am not in the mood for it,” the man named Daniel shouted as he walked over to Neville. The tall man just loomed angrily over the both of them. Daniel then cast a quick look over to Finn. “Hey Finn buddy, how’s it going?”_ _

__“Could be better,” Finn croaked out._ _

__Daniel shifted focus back to Neville. “Seriously Adrian, what the hell is all of this? I gave you these powers so you could use them for peace! That was the whole idea. Instead, you’ve been abusing them all over the world in your band! I’ve given you two warnings before and how do you repay me? BY NEARLY KILLING TWO PEOPLE!”_ _

__“I can explain! Really! Just ask Hu-”_ _

__“Nope! Not hearing it! This was your third shot and you blew it. You now know what Kane and I have to do. We have to police our own.”_ _

__“No… No! Please, not that!”_ _

__“Kane!”_ _

__Daniel snapped his fingers and the two men stepped back, forming finger guns aimed at Neville. As Neville advanced on them, the two “fired,” a green light coming from their fingers and surrounding Neville in a shock. Sami looked away as the green light surged and then back as it faded away. Neville fell to his knees, trying his best to make objects around him float, but to know avail. “Oh god… Please…”_ _

__“Sorry Adrian,” Daniel said as the smoke cleared. “You were a great student of mine, but you knew the rules.”_ _

__Without another word, Daniel and Kane turned out of the club. Sami stood up slowly and walked over to Neville, a gentle hand out. “Hey… um… are you okay?”_ _

__“Just end it.”_ _

__“What?”_ _

__“I lost my powers in the most shameful way and I’m certain Hunter already knows,” Neville sighed, not looking up from his position. “Just end it already. You’ve won.”_ _

__Sami took a deep breath as he scrubbed his hand over his face. “I don’t feel good about winning like this.”_ _

__“Yeah, well,” Neville muttered, still looking forward. “Neither do I. So just do it.”_ _

__Sami sighed as he started taking a few steps back. “Tell the next guy I’ll be ready for him.”_ _

__Neville looked back at Sami slightly, a small grin on his face. “Oh, they will be. Don’t worry about that.”_ _

__With that, Sami rushed forward, kicking Neville square in the back. As Neville fell forward, a bright light shone in his position for a few seconds before disappearing, coins clattering onto the floor in his place. Sami sighed as he stood straight up again and looked over at Finn, who was still lying on the floor. “Are you okay?”_ _

__“Yeah… I think I will be, Sami.”_ _

__As Sami bent over to scoop Finn off the floor of the club, he heard a groan from Kevin as he rolled back into a seated position. “Did… did you just kill the only good friend in this band?”_ _

__“I heard that,” Paige shouted from under the merch stand._ _

__“He’s not dead,” Sami muttered as he helped Finn up. “Though you may want to find a new bassist because I don’t know where he is.”_ _

__“Fuck,” Kevin mumbled._ _

__“So you were dating?”_ _

__“That’s none of your fucking business, Sami,” Kevin sputtered as he pounded his fist against the floor. Sami wanted to say something else to Kevin to make this feel like closure, but the words got lost in his throat on the way to his mouth. For the first time in his life, Kevin didn’t feel worth the extra breaths._ _

__Well… maybe one. “Yeah, well, you tried to get me killed. I think we’re even.”_ _

__“So, um,” Alicia said as she popped her head out from under the table. “Who do we tell is responsible for the mess?”_ _

__Sami and Finn looked around the club for a second, seeing the havoc wrecked by the fight. Finn sighed as he scooped up his hammer and placed it back into his messenger bag with one easy motion. “Bill it to Hunter Hearst Helmsley. I’m sure he’ll know why.”_ _

__A silence fell over the club as Sami put his arm around Finn and the two began to limp out of the club together. Suddenly, Finn stopped and looked back towards the green room. “Hey, what about Seth’s mic?”_ _

__“Forget it,” Sami mumbled as he continued to walk out. “It’s not worth the hassle.”_ _


	7. Go For Broke

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sami takes that next step with Finn. Y'know... the sexy kind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I didn't mean for this chapter update to take forever, but this chapter kicked my ass royally. Writing porn still gives me, as Matt Fraction and Carmella would say, the yips. Thanks for iggypup87 for talking me through it though, so I hope it comes across okay.
> 
> Apology to Bryan Lee O'Malley. That one's been long overdue.
> 
> Also, if you are interested in that sort of thing, I've made a [playlist!](https://play.spotify.com/user/misskittyf/playlist/0p11eK0F5wngmToaqh6Rp5) It's not super structured, but it's all stuff that fits within the realm of the story.

“You gonna be okay there?”

Sami looked up at Finn from his spot on the bed as he adjusted the ice pack on his neck. “I think so,” Sami mumbled, looking at the welts developing over his bare chest and arms. There were even a few on his legs, which could probably be seen from space now that he was stripped down to his boxers. “I’ll probably make it through the night.”

“Good,” Finn whispered as he leaned over and kissed Sami on the head. “I nearly lost you once tonight, y’know.”

“Yeah, I know.”

A silence fell between them as the ceiling fan whirred overhead. They were unsure of what to say next, with so many thoughts and worries from the night racing in their minds. Finally, after what felt like ages in just a few seconds, Finn finally spoke. “Why did you do it?”

“I’m sorry?”

“You nearly sacrificed yourself for me,” Finn said, his voice rising, but not too much. “Why? We haven’t been dating that long, and you could have been rid of all of this if you just let him kill me.”

“It wouldn’t have been right,” Sami said, sitting up a little. Finn tried to stop him, but with a grunt, Sami pulled himself up anyway. “I mean, I know we’ve only been dating for a couple of months and I generally don’t know that much about you, but I just couldn’t imagine you not being here anymore.”

Finn grinned a little bit at that, scooting closer onto the bed next to Sami. “Well, what do you want to know?”

“Really? Now? I’m kind of tired, to be honest.”

“Just ask me five questions then,” Finn responded, looking up at Sami from his place on his side. 

Sami smiled a little as he eased back down into the bed, turning on his side to look at Finn. “Well, first of all, how old are you anyway?”

“Seriously?”

“Yeah seriously. You’ve never told me.”

“I’m 34,” Finn whispered with slight hesitation. “But I turn 35 next month.”

“Seriously,” Sami giggled. “I never would have guessed. You look like you could still be in your 20s, unlike my 31-going-on-32 year old self.”

It was Finn’s turn to giggle, this time with a little extra blush at Sami’s comments. “Flatterer.”

“So when is your birthday anyway? Mine’s July 12th.”

“July 25th.”

“Oh man, so close to matching birthdays.”

“Really? That excites you?”

“Don’t judge me,” Sami said, pushing Finn’s shoulder slightly.

Another fit of giggles before Finn recomposed himself. “C’mon Sami, you got three more.”

Sami sighed and mused over the questions in his head. He had so many, but didn’t know where to start. “Okay… um… where are all the places you’ve lived?”

“Ireland, Britain, a short time in Scotland, Japan, New York, Connecticut, and then here.”

“Did you used to be a model then?”

“I’ve done a lot of things, but that was a job I used to have, yeah.”

“Wow, can’t say I’ve ever dated a model before,” Sami said with a grin.

“Ex-model,” Finn corrected. “Now I’m just a delivery boy.”

“A very pretty one,” Sami said, leaning over to kiss Finn on the head.

Finn let out a small noise as Sami pulled back. “Okay, one more.”

Sami bit his lip as he looked at Finn. He knew what he wanted to ask, but he knew it wasn’t going to be an easy question. “Okay, but you don’t have to answer this one yet if you don’t want to.”

“What is it?”

Sami took a deep breath, looking towards the ceiling before looking back at Finn. “...Who is Hunter anyway?”

Finn sighed, running his hand over his face and turning up towards the ceiling. “He was the last bad ex, and when I say bad, I mean _real_ bad. The kind of bad that manipulates people to get what he wants. The fact he put together a group of my exes to try and kill you because he’s mad at me is one of the least surprising things about him.”

“Wow… that bad, huh?”

“He makes Kevin look pretty good by comparison, and I’m fairly certain Kevin bruised my ribs.”

“I’ll be the most gentle big spoon then,” Sami said, slowly settling into the mattress. “I mean, that is, if you’re okay with me staying the night.”

Finn smiled as leaned in to kiss Sami. “After tonight? Of course it’s okay.”

“Thanks,” Sami whispered, his eyes getting heavy. “I’m probably going to pass out now, so just throw an arm around yourself when you’re ready for bed.”

“Good night, _mo ghrá_ ,” Finn whispered back

“Wuzzat,” Sami mumbled as he closed his eyes.

“Don’t worry about it,” Finn said, kissing him on the head again. “See you in the morning.”

Sami wanted to argue and maybe ask a million more questions, but every part of himself was exhausted. Right now, the priority was sleep. Maybe for once, his brain would be too tired to throw weird dreams at him.

———

Sami felt pinned to the floor by something in his chest.

He felt his hand move up the object. A sword, but instead the steel was hot instead of cold. Still, he did not bleed or have trouble breathing. He just couldn’t move.

Suddenly, there was an object in his periphery. No… a person. No… a _shadow._

The shadow curled its hand around the hilt of the sword. “Please, take it out,” Sami gasped.

Whatever it was, it hesitated for a second. Then it pushed the sword in further, Sami’s breath growing shorter with each inch. The shadow then leaned in towards Sami, giving him a good look at its eyes, causing him to gasp.

They were his eyes.

———

Sami woke with a start from his dream, breathing heavily and feeling cold sweat starting to form on his body. “Oh god…”

“Shhh, I’m here,” Finn whispered, sitting up in the bed and gently putting a hand on Sami’s chest. “I’m here.”

Sami slowly started to catch his breath, his tenseness easing slowly under Finn’s touch. “I’m okay,” he gasped out between breaths. “Just… bad dreams.”

“It’s okay, dearest,” Finn said, reaching out for Sami’s face and gently rubbing along his cheek. “It’s not real.”

Sami looked over at the clock on Finn’s side, partially to help him ground himself back to reality, but also just to see what time it even was. “ _Habibi,_ it’s after eight. Don’t you need to be at work?”

“Called out,” he muttered, leaning his head on Sami’s shoulder. “Called out last night after you fell asleep actually. Just… after everything with Kevin and Adrian, I just needed to decompress.”

Sami nodded, putting his arms around Finn and leaning back into the mattress. “I get that. I think I do too.”

“You just want to lay here in bed for a while then? I don’t mind if you go back to sleep.”

“No, I think I’m up now,” Sami sighed as he stroked the back of Finn’s head, feeling the fresh buzz of his fade under his own calloused fingertips. “But I don’t mind just being here with you.”

Finn seemed to purr and squirm under Sami’s touch. “Actually, just keep doing that for a while.”

“Doing what? Petting your buzz?”

Finn nodded against Sami’s chest. “It feels good.”

Sami smirked a little at that as he continued to do so. For a few minutes, Finn made low happy noises as Sami scratched his head. “You _really_ like that, huh?”

“ _Uh huh,_ ” Finn mumbled as he snuggled himself against Sami’s chest. “Is there anything your fingers can’t do?”

Sami felt himself blush at the statement. He knew Finn wasn’t trying to be directly sexual, but his brain did go there. His brain had been going there a lot since they started dating, but it was also blocking him from actually doing anything about it. “Um…”

Finn paused, looking up at Sami. “Did I just make it weird?”

“No, you’re fine,” Sami muttered, still petting Finn’s head. “It’s all me.”

“Still,” Finn sighed, “I don’t want to feel like I’m pushing or anything.”

“You’re not,” Sami assured. “You’ve actually been so patient…”

Finn gave Sami a bit of a sad smile before wriggling out of his embrace and rolling out of bed. “I’m gonna make some tea, if that’s okay. Still want to spend the rest of the morning in bed though.”

“I’m down,” Sami said, adjusting himself again.

He watched as Finn walked out the doorway and into the hall, his eyes travelling down towards his perfect butt in pajama pants. Sami sighed as he looked up towards the ceiling. “Dammit all…”

Sami didn’t know why his brain had to be like this. So trapped in hesitation and anxiety. It’s not that he didn’t like how things were with Finn. He just didn’t know how to take it to the next steps after being stuck on the same one for so long.

He closed his eyes, remembering the night before as they worked together against Neville and Kevin. It flipped to how he imagined Finn’s moans when he actually managed to have privacy. Finally, his brain settled on the night of their first date, when Finn brought him in from the cold and they kissed in the doorway of this very room. That night, his brain had run on overdrive, asking a million questions at once. Instead, he settled on ‘go for broke’ and kissed Finn.

Sami opened his eyes, listening to the sound of a burbling tea kettle in the next room. Maybe it was time to go for broke again.

He pushed back the covers of the bed and swung his legs over the side. He still ached from the night before, but he would live. Slowly, he walked towards the kitchen, carefully carrying himself with each step. He turned into the kitchen, his eyes studying Finn’s back as he eyed the electric kettle intently. There was some bruising, but it just seemed to highlight the muscles.

With a deep breath, Sami walked over to Finn, wrapping his arms around him from behind. Finn tensed up for a second, but then sighed of relief as soon as he realized it was Sami. “Thought you weren’t getting out of bed?”

“I wasn’t,” Sami said softly as he gently kissed along Finn’s neck. “But I decided it was worth it to get up to drag you back.”

Finn made a small ‘mmm’ noise at Sami’s kisses, holding his hand to the side of Sami’s head as his neck arched and his body shivered. “The water’s still boiling, dearest.”

“I meant just you,” Sami mumbled, his lips against Finn’s neck. “Just you, only you. Nothing else.”

After a pause, Finn pulled away from Sami, turning to look him in the eye. “Are you saying…”

“Yeah, I think I’m ready,” Sami said, his fingers lacing around Finn’s. “I mean, I know it’s been a long time for me, so I might be kind of… y’know… rusty. But I want this. I’ve been wanting it. I’ve just been so… metaphorically fucked…”

Finn shushed him, pressing his fingers gently to Sami’s lips. Behind him, the water came to a boil as the kettle shut off, but Finn wasn’t paying attention. “We’ll take it slow, okay? Because I want this too, but there’s no pressure.”

Sami slowly began to move his lips down Finn’s hand, kissing each inch along the way before he held his wrist up to his mouth. He looked up at Finn, who was biting his lip. “Slow enough?”

“Well, maybe we can pick up speed just a little.”

With that, Finn pulled Sami in towards him, his lips pressed against Sami’s in a fever pitch. As Sami slipped his tongue into Finn’s mouth, he hooked his thumbs around Finn’s pajama pants and pulled him flush against him. Finn stumbled slightly, but rebalanced himself by hooking his arm around Sami’s neck. He pulled his mouth away from Sami’s, breathing heavily. “What’s wrong,” Sami gasped.

“Nothing,” Finn rasped. “I just wanted to do this.”

Before Sami could ask what ‘that’ was, Finn began kissing at Sami’s neck. Sami felt his body shiver at that, followed by a shock as Finn nipped at his neck. He moaned as he heard Finn laugh. “Like that, huh?”

“Surprisingly, yeah.”

“Sorry,” Finn mumbled as he buried his face in Sami’s collarbone. “Got excited. Should have asked first.”

“No, you’re fine,” Sami whispered. “Though maybe we can take this out of the kitchen. I did say I was dragging you back.”

“Then drag me back.”

Finn backed away from Sami then, holding his arm out for him with a smile. With a smirk, Sami grabbed him by the wrist and pulled him back towards the room with slow and deliberate steps. He felt his heart speed up as he looked at Finn, feeling a million types of anxious and excited all at once.

In the doorway, Sami pulled Finn in close and began kissing him again. Finn laughed a little as he broke away, pushing Sami back into the room and onto the bed. “Oof… careful there,” Sami breathed. “Still a little sore from last night.”

“Sorry,” Finn muttered as he straddled Sami. “Will this make you feel better?”

Slowly, he began grinding on top of Sami. Sami gasped as he threw his head back against the mattress. He could feel himself growing hard against the rhythm of Finn’s hips. “Yeah, I think it’s wor-”

Sami then felt a shock and shiver down his body as he grunted, his boxers feeling hot and sticky. He reopened his eyes and looked up at Finn embarrassed. “Oh god, I’m so sor-”

Finn quickly shushed him, placing his hand gently on his face. “It’s alright. It’s not the end of the world.”

“I know, I know,” Sami breathed. “Just like I said… long time. And it’s hard to work on that thing when… you know… no actual bedroom…”

Finn climbed down from Sami’s lap and pulled him off the bed. “Don’t explain a thing. Just stand up for me, okay?”

Sami slowly stood up, feeling a bit awkward as Finn walked over to the bathroom and started rummaging through drawers. Before he could say anything, Finn came back holding a washcloth, condoms and lube. “What’s the washcloth for,” Sami asked.

“Helping with clean up, obviously,” Finn stated. He tossed the condoms and lube onto the bed before placing his hand on Sami’s waist. “If that’s okay.”

Sami shifted awkwardly. He was feeling sticky, that much was true. However, it just felt like he striking out so far and he didn’t want to make it weirder. “I mean, I’m not helpless…”

“I know, I know,” Finn assured, lightly kissing him on the chin. “But I’ll make it worth it for the both of us while I’m down there.”

Sami looked back at Finn, placing his hand on his neck. With a deep breath, he nodded before kissing Finn again. “Go for it,” he breathed.

With a smile, Finn kissed Sami’s chin again, then moved his way down his neck, and then his chest. His tongue quickly flicked over Sami’s nipple, causing him to shudder a bit. “Too much,” Finn asked.

“Not enough,” Sami replied with a smile.

A small laugh came out of Finn’s mouth as he knelt on the ground in front of Sami. He gently traced around the waistband of Sami’s boxers, looking up at him expectantly. “Ready?”

Sami nodded. “Yep. As I’ll ever be.”

Slowly, Finn dipped his fingers below the waistband. He then pulled Sami’s boxers down towards the floor, and Sami noticed himself holding his breath. It had been… what? Three years? Four? Was Finn going to look at Sami’s cock for the first time, sense that it had seen no action and decide that this hopeless case wasn’t worth his time?

Instead, Sami felt the softness of the terry cloth towel on his thigh as Finn wiped up the semen that had ended up there. Sami breathed slowly as Finn moved the towel across his cock. A few absent minded strokes at first, but then slow and deliberate as Sami felt himself starting to get hard again. Soon, the towel was dropped and Sami felt Finn’s hand wrap around his cock. “Too much?”

“Still not enough,” Sami rasped as Finn began slowly stroking again. He gasped at the feeling of Finn’s calloused hand carefully moving it’s way up and down his shaft, careful and slow. “Fuck…”

“I haven’t really done anything yet,” Finn said softly with a laugh.

“It still feels good.”

“I could make it feel better.”

“How so?”

Finn just smirked as he moved his hand down to the base of the shaft. He then swirled his tongue around the head of Sami’s cock, which caused Sami to inhale sharply. “Jesus, Finn. Let me sit down first?”

“Whatever works for you,” he said, looking up at Sami.

Sami backed up onto the edge of the bed, sitting down. “Okay, okay… I’m good.”

Finn then crawled over to Sami, putting his hands on his thighs and slowly sinking his mouth over Sami’s erection. Sami breathed in again, exhaling slow and jagged as he ran his fingers through Finn’s hair and over his buzz. Finn let out a throaty noise of delight as he ran his tongue serpentine across the bottom of Sami’s cock. Sami let out a moan as he leaned back, his fingers gripping onto Finn’s hair. He squeezed his eyes shut as he felt Finn’s mouth tighten and his tongue cup against the head. With a quick flick of Finn’s tongue, Sami bucked and shuddered. “Oh god…”

A low laugh came from Finn’s throat, giving off a slight vibration that made Sami gasp. He slowly began to move his hand up Sami’s thigh, delicately dragging his nails across the goosebumps raising in his skin. He then pulled his mouth away from Sami, causing Sami to snap back to reality as he did. “What? What’s wrong?”

“Nothing, Sami,” Finn purred, looking up at Sami with hungry eyes. “I just want to know if I can finger you.”

“Oh,” Sami breathed, suddenly feeling embarrassed. “I just worried you weren’t enjoying yourself or something.”

“That could be the furthest from the truth,” he smiled, leaning against Sami’s thigh and kissing it once for good measure. “Are you okay?”

“Never better,” Sami admitted as he brushed his hand against Finn’s face. “Now go about with your… fingering… God, that doesn’t sound cool or sexy at all.”

Finn laughed as he reached over for the lube. “You’re very cool and sexy though.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.”

Sami felt himself blush as Finn squirted a bit of lube onto his fingers and rubbed them together. What could he even say at this moment? He had a million thoughts and one thing in particular he wanted to say, but was _**now**_ really the right time?

Before Sami could act on any of it though, Finn tapped on Sami’s thigh. “Scoot forward if you can? If you have to lean back on the bed, that’s fine.”

“Oh, yeah, sure.”

Sami pushed himself forward, spreading his legs apart as he leaned back on the bed. Finn reached under, circling his finger around Sami’s hole. “Ready?”

“For whatever you have planned? Yes.”

Finn grinned wickedly as he slowly pushed his finger in, causing Sami to tilt his head back with a moan. With his other hand, Finn grabbed the base of his cock again and plunged his mouth over the head. Sami’s breath caught in his throat, his brain practically short circuiting at the feeling of Finn’s mouth tightening around his cock and the gradually speeding thrusts from his finger. His hips bucked as Finn’s tongue waved and flicked against him, the space behind his eyes searing red hot as he squeezed them shut. “Oh god… Finn… I’m gonna… Fuck!”

Before Sami could get the words out, Finn pulled his mouth away and withdrew. Sami looked up, still feeling short of breath. “Why did you stop?”

“Don’t want to wear you out too much,” Finn mused as he crawled in the bed over to Sami, still in his pajama pants. He leaned down and kissed Sami, his mouth still stinging salty. “I want to make this last for the two of us.”

“Well, what do you want to do next then,” Sami asked.

Finn chuckled as he kissed at Sami’s neck. Sami shivered again. “I think the more important question here is what do you want?”

Sami looked up at Finn, gently running his hand over his beard. Finn kissed at his fingers, making Sami feel like mush. He felt frozen, finally in this moment he had only had as a faraway fantasy for the past two months. What could he even say? What would even sound good coming from him?

He flashed back to one particular fantasy that Bayley had awkwardly interrupted when she needed to get ready for work two weeks prior. “Oh c’mon, Sami! You can masturbate all you want when I’m not here,” she had groaned, dragging him out of the similar headspace he had been in moments before with Finn.

Sami took a deep breath as he leaned up towards Finn. “I… would it be weird to ask if you can ride me?”

“Why would that be weird,” Finn asked with a grin.

“I don’t know,” Sami asked, feeling embarrassed again. “I don’t know your preferences.”

Finn leaned down, putting his forehead against Sami’s as he dropped his voice to a whisper. “Sami Zayn, I will gladly ride you like a bicycle if that’s what you want.”

Sami wondered if it was possible to come from words alone. “Well, maybe not that serious, but yes. Do it.”

Finn kissed Sami again. Briefly at first, but then long and slow as Sami scooted back onto the bed. He settled himself in the center as Finn pulled away and climbed off the bed. He tossed the lube and condoms towards Sami as he began to pull at the drawstring of his pants. “You’re gonna need these…”

“Hope I remember how to use them,” Sami joked as he picked up the bottle.

“It’s like… No wait, already used the bike metaphor.”

Sami laughed as he looked over at Finn, slowly stroking himself as he applied lube. “Well?”

“Well what?”

“Considering how quickly you got my boxers off, you’re certainly taking your time taking your pants off.”

Finn stuck his tongue out at Sami as the pants slung down to his hips. “Maybe I’m nervous too…”

That caused Sami to raise an eyebrow. “Don’t be. It’s just me…”

“Exactly,” Finn remarked with a nervous laugh. “I want to do right by you, you know?”

“You already are though…”

Finn gave a nervous smile at that before he took a deep breath, hooking his thumbs onto the waistband. He slowly slid down the pants, kicking them aside as soon as they hit the floor. Sami felt himself heat up even more as he looked Finn up and down even more, taking in his size and shape. “Oh wow… you’re…”

“What?”

“Even more impressive.”

Finn buried his face awkwardly and laughed, trying his best to hide his blush. Quickly, Sami ripped open a condom wrapper and rolled it onto himself. “Sorry, got distracted.”

As he started lubing himself again, Finn leaned over, giving Sami a few good strokes that caused his breath to hitch. Finn licked his lips as he leaned over Sami. “Are you ready?”

“More than,” Sami breathed.

“Good.”

Finn then kissed him super quick before grabbing the lube bottle to take care of himself. He inhaled sharply as he rubbed the lube over his hole and inserted a finger. “Need help with that,” Sami asked.

“I got it,” Finn responded with a laugh as he finished. He leaned over to kiss Sami again as he straddled his torso. He lowered his voice. “I got you.”

Sami chuckled as he kissed Finn back, slow and sweet as the night of their first date. As they separated, Finn repositioned himself. He grabbed Sami’s cock, holding it steady as he lowered himself. He let out a long and slow gasp as he did, and Sami nearly did the same as he sat up to grab Finn’s hips. “God, you’re so tight.”

Finn just smirked as he slowly began riding Sami, a happy gasp escaping his throat as he did. Sami moved his hands down to his ass, which just cracked a smile on Finn’s face. “You know how good you feel, Sami?”

Finn clenched, which caused Sami to toss his head back as he began to pick up speed. “How?”

“You’ve been worth the wait,” Finn said, his voice getting breathier as he grabbed onto Sami’s shoulders. He tossed his head back, letting out a loud moan as he did. “Fuck, Sami.”

With every motion, Sami gripped onto Finn tighter as his own body began to arch. He was practically seeing pixels in his eyes as he felt himself getting closer to that point. His heart beat like a bass drum in his chest, with the sound of Finn’s open moans like a treble to the bass of his restrained ones. Finn sped up, his pattern and moaning getting erratic as he did, which Sami knew had to be him getting close. “Finn, I’m almost…”

As the words came out of his mouth, his vision went white as he let out a loud and deep groan. His body began to seize as he dug his nails into Finn, causing him to let out a scream of his own. As Sami felt the condom on him fill up, he felt a warm sensation on his stomach as Finn moaned sharply before collapsing on top of him. Sami caught his breath, opening his eyes as his vision set straight. “You alright?”

“Never better,” Finn panted, laughing a little as he did. “Can’t remember the last time I came like that.”

Sami laughed as he wrapped his arms around Finn and kissed him on the side of his head. “Worth the wait, huh?”

“Every minute,” Finn retorted.

He peeled himself away from Sami, unmounting himself and flopping onto the side as he caught his breath. Sami took that opportunity to remove the condom and tie it off before turning onto his side to look at Finn. “You know we’re never going to get that timing right again, right?”

“Oh yeah,” Finn said with a laugh, covering his face. “Has time stopped?”

“What?”

“Nothing… just something I read in a comic once,” he said, uncovering his face and looking at Sami. “But I mean what I said. Worth the wait.”

Sami smiled as he kissed Finn on the lips briefly before looking down at his stomach. He wiped up a bit of Finn’s cum and licked it off his finger. “You do taste good…”

“I can give you a better taste after we shower if you want,” Finn purred, wiggling his eyebrows. “Or during.”

“Gimme a minute before we get in there, okay? I’d like to lay here for a second,” Sami mused as he petted the side of Finn’s head.

“Same. We have all day anyway and there’s a lot of things I would like to do to you.”

“Is that so?”

“I mean, if you’re down.”

Sami pressed his forehead against Finn’s, nuzzling against him as he did. “I mean, make me some breakfast after cleaning up and I’ll be here as long as you want.”

“Good,” Finn muttered as he kissed Sami, scratching at his beard. “We got two months to catch up on, after all.”

Sami smiled to himself as he rested himself against Finn. He had so many words he wanted to say right about then. Well, three in particular, but he internally swatted that feeling away. It wasn’t time, so he settled on two. “Thank you.”

“For what,” Finn asked, a bit of confusion raising in his voice.

“For being patient as I worked out my own issues, for being better than I deserve, for blowing my mind like that… Take your pick.”

“I’m not better than you deserve,” Finn mumbled.

“Still,” Sami whispered. “Thank you.”

It was Finn’s turn to turn red as he looked at Sami before he pressed a sloppy kiss on Sami’s lips. “You’re welcome, Sami.”

“So… breakfast?”

Finn’s surprise turned into giggles as he covered his face. “Shower first.”

“Okay, okay… Just be thorough. I am rather sticky over here.”

“I’ll show you thorough.”

“Is that a threat, Mister Bálor?”

“More like an invitation, Mister Zayn.”

It was Sami’s turn to dissolve into laughter. This might have been the best sick day ever and it had only just begun.


	8. Interlude: Paper Dolls

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A short interlude on the way to the movies.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy belated Scott Pilgrim Day! I decided to write a short chapter based on the Free Scott Pilgrim story to commemorate it while still being completely wired on my flight to New York. Regular chapters will resume after this.

“Ugh. Great. We’re gonna be late,” Sasha huffed as she looked at her watch. “Did you really have to spend that long picking a drink, Sami? And then NOT get one?”

Sami was slightly taken aback as Sasha turned her head to glare at him. Though she wasn’t wrong. “Hey, it’s not my fault I’ve been needing stamina boosters lately and no one provides.”

Finn chuckled as he squeezed at his hand as they walked up the street. Sami wasn’t sure if he was blushing at that response or if the summer heat was starting to get to him. Bayley just playfully shook her head at them. “And I thought Sasha and I were gross.”

“We should cut them out of the Beaches trip now to stop their grossness,” Sasha said sarcastically. “We got a few days.”

“Seriously though Sami,” Finn interjected. “I could have bought you the drink after you spent that long on it.”

“No no,” Sami sighed. “If a man forgets his wallet, he must live with that fact.”

“Plus you probably have no money right now, right,” Bayley asked.

“I would have had enough for a drink.”

“Still, that pointless side quest is going to make us late for the movie,” Sasha groaned. “It’s not every day your girl gets free tickets!”

Sami raised an eyebrow at that statement. “You work at a movie studio. And you do voiceovers...”

“I mean to movies that actually look good.” Sasha then pointed to the makeshift construction wall to their left. “Most of what I get is this…”

Sami looked up to see posters of another upcoming teen dystopian film called _Resilient._ On the poster, teen superstar Aliyah Areebi dressed in all black leather stared down the viewer with a distant and determined look. She usually reminded Sami of his younger cousins, which always endeared her to him, but something about that poster didn’t sit right with him. “God, did they have to photoshop Aliyah’s face so much? She looks so creepy and soulless.”

As if right on cue, one of the photoshopped Aliyahs shifted her eyes towards him. Sami yelped as he jumped back. Finn turned to ask what was wrong, but was cut off as seven of the Aliyahs jumped down from the posters and turned their attention towards the group, circling them. Sasha and Bayley clustered behind Sami, holding close to his back. “Is this some weird ninja thing,” Bayley asked, her voice cracking a bit with fear.

“I… maybe,” Finn responded, his voice sounding nervous.

“Is it one of your exes,” Sami asked as he shifted his focus back and forth between the Aliyah clones staring them down.

Finn bit his lip. “I can’t say. It’s possible.”

“Sami Zayn,” one of the Aliyah’s boomed, her usual light and peppy voice sounding like the tearing of paper across nails. “Prepare to die.”

Sasha sighed as she pushed at Sami’s back. “Well, Best Fighter in Montreal, you gonna help us?”

Sami gulped as he began scratching at his beard. “I… well… I don’t really feel comfortable fighting girls.”

“WHAT?”

The Aliyahs pounced at the group as they tried their best to bob and weave to the other side of the street. “What do you mean,” Bayley shouted as she dodged a kick from one of the clones. “What about all the stories of your friend Nattie from fight camp?”

“She was like one of the only girls,” Sami said as he blocked a punch from an Aliyah. “Plus, she was like a sparring partner. It wasn’t like _fighting_ fighting.”

“Oh for shit’s sake,” Sasha groaned before she let out a shout and began running away from an Aliyah.

“You gotta learn to fight girls eventually,” Finn sighed as he swung at one of the Aliyahs. 

Sami gasped as he ran to stop Finn from that, but ended up elbowing one of them in the process. “Oh no oh no,” he muttered as she dissolved, turning into a small slip of paper.

“Oh my god, it’s totally ninja stuff,” Sasha yelled. “She’s not real! She’s made of paper!”

“Stiiiiiilll…”

“Forget this,” Finn sighed as he came up behind Sami and grabbed his wrists.

“What are you doing, Finn,” Sami asked.

“Helping you end this,” he replied as he closed up Sami’s hand and swung it towards one of the Aliyahs. Another slip of paper fell as she poofed away. “It’s just paper… You can hit her. It’s fine.”

Sami gritted his teeth as he backed away from Finn, closed his eyes, and swung at another Aliyah. “It still doesn’t make it okay.”

Another poof. Another slip. 

Three down.

Sami closed his eyes with each hit at all the successive Aliyahs. He hated this. He really did. This was not how he was taught. This was not why he learned to fight. This is not why he trained. He wasn’t supposed to be the aggressor.

Especially if she was like his cousin, no matter how made of paper she was.

As the final Aliyah poofed, Bayley walked over to Sami and patted him on the shoulder. “Dude, you okay?”

“Yeah,” Sami sighed, rubbing at his face. “I’ll be okay.”

“Cool, because I love you and want you to be okay, but that was probably not the time for chivalry.”

“What are these anyway,” Finn asked, bending down to look at one of the papers. 

Sami knelt down on the ground to scoop them up. They were all the same size and, upon further inspection, had the exact same print on them. “Uh… they’re free drink coupons. And they expire today.”

He cast a pleading look over to Sasha, who just lifted her glasses up to rub her eyes and sigh. “You have to be kidding me.”

“C’mon Sash, I will totally share,” Sami pleaded, holding his hands up in forgiveness towards her. “There’s four of us and there are seven here.”

“Fine, but we’re using a different mini-mart on the way there. And no getting up to pee six times during the movie!”

“That was ONE TIME,” Sami shouted. “A record, not an average!”

Finn snorted at that as he took Sami’s free hand. “Are you really going to be okay,” he asked as they walked behind a fuming Sasha and a laughing Bayley.

“Yeah,” Sami responded, looking down towards the ground. “I was just always taught that hitting a woman is cowardly.”

“In a lot of ways, yeah, but it’s also cowardly to leave your friends hanging like that. Bayley and Sasha aren’t trained like you.”

“I guess I have a lot to think about…”

Sami looked back over his shoulder to the aftermath. There wasn’t much to be had there except some posters that looked torn fluttering in the breeze and a woman in a black hoodie skating by it all in the opposite direction from them, a shock of orange hair spooling out from under it.


	9. Cake by the Lake

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The boys take some time to celebrate their birthdays in the Beaches. Things are pretty great, all things considered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel like I have been working on this chapter forever. Like before Finn got injured forever. It was the original chapter eight, but then things changed when I found out Scott Pilgrim Day was happening. Anyway, enjoy this piece of happiness and know that the two chapters I've REALLY been itching to write are coming! MWUAHAHAHAHAH!

“Man, couldn’t you live in this moment forever?”

“It’s pretty great,” Finn said as he stood in the waves of Lake Ontario with Sami, curled up in his arms. “Almost feels like home.”

Sami looked around at their surroundings. The sandy beach, the gulls overhead, the water lapping against their bare legs. Yeah, for July, you couldn’t get more perfect. “I lo-”

Finn moved his hand over Sami’s lips. “Shhh. Don’t say anything. I just want to enjoy this mo-”

“UGH! UGGOS! Can you stop being gross?”

Finn raised his sunglasses to shoot a look back towards the beach at Tyler, who was sitting near to the shore under an umbrella. “Oi! Breeze! I’m tryin’ to enjoy our birthday here!”

“Yeah, but whose house in the Beaches is it?”

“Mine technically since I’m getting in that YouTube money baaaybeeee,” Xavier piped in next to him. “So I say let them be cute all they want!”

“Yeah Breeze,” Dean said from behind him in a reclining chair, taking a swig from a metal water bottle Sami was certain wasn’t filled with water. “Stop being such a buzzkill and let the two gross ones be gross on their birthday weekend. Jesus.”

Tyler huffed as he leaned back on his towel. “Whatever.”

Sami sighed as he looked back towards the beach. So a romantic weekend away to celebrate their birthdays was more like a weekend away to celebrate their birthdays with his bandmates, his roommate, his roommate’s girlfriends, his roommate’s girlfriend’s two boyfriends, one dude that he liked and his one obnoxious boyfriend who happened to be an ex of one of his bandmates. It was a full house, to say the least, but it was a good kind of weekend away. Especially with the call Sami had gotten from that new Syrian restaurant in Wychwood before he left.

“I know it’s birthday weekend and all, but I’m mostly excited not to be unemployed come Monday,” Sami admitted, a grin growing across his face as he looked back at Finn.

Finn grinned right back as he wrapped his arms around Sami’s neck. “God, I know you’ve said it like five million times since yesterday, but I’m so happy for you.”

“Well, can I at least get one more congratulatory make out while we’re standing in Lake Ontario like this?”

“Only one?”

“Well, if you’re offering more…”

Sami wrapped his arms around Finn’s waist, picking him up slightly as they kissed. Soft lips and happy noises against the sounds of summer. Sami could get used to this.

“GROSS!”

Without breaking their kiss, Sami placed Finn back down in the water and slowly flipped Tyler the bird. In the background, he could hear Xavier shouting something about holding the pose and how that was going in the trip album.

He broke away from Finn to see that he was flipping him off too. Sami chuckled as he faced back towards the beach. “C’mon, let’s give him one where we’re smiling.”

\---

“C’mon guys! The court is finally free!”

Bayley went running towards the beach volleyball court at full speed, with the rest of the party trailing behind her. Since they had gotten the invite from Xavier over drinks a week after the incident at Lee’s Palace to celebrate Sami and Finn’s birthdays at his place in the Beaches, Sami wasn’t certain if Bayley had talked about anything else besides her plans to dominate everyone at volleyball. 

“No, you’re not beating me there,” Sasha shouted as she ran up behind her, tackling her onto the sand of the course.

“Jesus Christ,” Finn responded, lifting up his sunglasses. “Are they going to be okay?”

“Yeah, they’re just real competitive,” Sami explained as they walked up to the border of the court.

“Which makes for real good drunk watching for the rest of us,” Dean said as he plopped down his chair down next to them.

“Okay, who’s playing,” Bayley shouted as she scrambled up from the sand, her right side covered in sand from Sasha’s onslaught. “Roman, you ready to fight for the Purple Pumas again?”

“Naaah,” he said as he sat his chair down next to Dean, his large form practically dwarfing it. “I’m not scrappy enough for the way y’all play. Plus, I got a buzz going and I’d like to keep it that way.”

“My brotherrrr,” Dean slurred as he passed his metal bottle over to Roman. Roman nodded at him as he took it and downed a rather large swig.

“Ooo… down a team member,” Sasha cooed as she brushed herself off and began to tie her hair back into a ponytail. “How will the Pumas stand a chance against the Juuban Jubilee? There’s no way they’ll beat the forces of Sasha, Seth and Xavier!”

“Yeah, no, I’m with Roman on this,” Xavier said.

“WHAT?! How could you do this to me!”

“Look, I was up all night playing _Street Fighter V_ online. I have no energy to take a spike from Bayley. You guys are way too aggressive!”

Sasha huffed as she looked at the rest of the group. “Well? Anyone else bailing out?”

“Well, I can’t speak for the rest of us,” Enzo rasped, “But I’d be more than willing to pick up Xavier’s slack, Sash.”

“You certainly don’t speak for me with that hair,” Tyler muttered as he broke off from the rest of the group.

“Well, I guess it’s four on four then,” Bayley grinned as she picked up the ball up and spun it in her hands. “Sami, you rolling with the Pumas again?”

“Always,” he responded as he joined Bayley on her side, fistbumping her.

“Alright, I’ll take Enzo,” Sasha sighed.

Enzo whooped as he jumped over the border. Seth scoffed as he did his celebratory dance on the court. “Really, you picked him before me?”

“Jealous,” Enzo retorted as he walked over to Sasha and blew her a kiss. “How _you_ doin’?”

Sasha rolled her eyes, but Sami could see the little smile on her face as she turned towards Bayley. “Alright, who you got next?”

“Carmella!”

“Seth!”

“Finn!”

“Cass!”

The two practically growled at each other as the rest of their teams formed behind them. Finn turned to Sami again. “Competitive really seems like an understatement for them, dear.”

“Yeah, well, it’s been a thing whenever we come out to the Beaches,” Sami shrugged. “They head up the teams, they go back and forth real hard, and then make up for it real hard later.”

“Oh, so it’s foreplay?”

“In a sense…”

“Okay Pumas, circle up,” Bayley shouted, calling the team to her. Carmella, Sami and Finn all huddled around her, lacing their arms together as they did. “We’re at a slight disadvantage this time without Roman and Sasha having Cass on her team to make up the height. However, we’ve always been underdogs…”

“Always,” asked Finn.

“Yes, always. Keep up, new kid,” Bayley said before refocusing on the task at hand. “We are underdogs and I feel like we can win this! Sasha’s not gonna beat me for the third time in a row…”

“You mean ‘us,’” replied Sami.

“You knew what I meant,” Bayley retorted.

As the circle broke apart, Sami hung back with Finn, wrapping his hand around his waist. “You know, this is mostly Bayley and Sasha’s thing. You don’t have to seriously play if you don’t want to.”

“I don’t know, I think I want to,” Finn mused as he watched Sasha’s team begin to position themselves.

“Okay then,” Sami sighed as he broke off from Finn and took position behind Bayley. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

With a few spins in her hand, Sasha jumped up and volleyed the ball over to Bayley’s side. Bayley volleyed back, hitting it a bit harder as she did. Cass dug, hitting towards Carmella. She tried to lobby the ball back, but only hit the net and caused the ball to bounce back to their side. Seth laughed as Sasha whooped over their first point. “Thanks for the point, shorty,” he cackled.

Carmella growled as she began to march towards Seth, but Finn just gently put a hand on her shoulder. “Let me swap with you, Carm?”

“Okay, but I’m still gonna show Mister Bleach and Perm what’s what later,” Carmella barked as she pointed at Seth.

“Oooo cry more, Staten Island Shorty,” Seth mocked.

“Enough,” Bayley shouted. “It’s your serve, guys. And Seth, watch what you say about my girlfriend.”

“And ours,” Enzo rumbled as he spun the ball around before serving it over to the other side. Quickly, Finn jumped up and spiked the ball over the net, nailing Seth on the side of the face with a loud THUNK!

As Seth stumbled back, holding his hand to his face, a silence fell over the court for a few seconds. Which was broken by Dean laughing a slow and evil laugh. “Serves you right, dick,” he shouted.

As a few more snickers and giggles popped up over the court, Seth growled. “You did this on purpose, Bálor! If that is your real name.”

Finn just shrugged with a grin. Sami hated admitting how charming it looked. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“I’m gonna make you pay for this,” Seth shouted as he stepped closer to the net.

Sasha quickly stepped in, pushing back on Seth’s chest. “Whoa there, hot stuff. Maybe slow your roll a bit. Let’s just focus on whipping some ass in this game, okay?”

Enzo pulled a playfully wounded look as he picked up the ball. “‘Hot stuff’? Sasha, I thought what we had was special!”

“Win this game for me and we’ll see,” she said with a wink.

“Gross,” Tyler groaned from under his umbrella.

“C’mon guys, let’s focus up,” Sami shouted as he walked over to Finn. He quickly patted him on the butt before nuzzling at his shoulder. “That was a nice shot, though, baby.”

“Thanks,” Finn said with a smile, his voice low. “I do try to dispense karmic justice accordingly when I can.”

“Alright,” Cass said as he took the ball and raised it up. “Here comes a fast one!”

\---

_“Weeeeee are the champions, my friiiiiiend.”_

“Bayley, that was like two hours ago,” Sasha groaned as they stumbled out of Ed’s Real Scoop. “Stop rubbing it in.”

“Nuh uh,” Bayley said as she took a lick of her toasted marshmallow ice cream. “You wouldn’t shut up for a week about beating me last time we played. I’m gonna keep this going for at least two!”

As the two argued, Sami laughed as he took Finn’s hand. “How’s your salted caramel, Finn?”

“‘S alright,” he said as he bit at his waffle cone. “I’ve had way better in Atlanta, but this’ll do. I’m enjoying the view more anyway.”

Sami looked over the street, admiring the red and golden shades of the sunset over the edges of the water that he could see and downtown Toronto in the distance. It was idyllic, with Sasha and Bayley playfully squabbling in front of them and Carmella walking between her boys with a smile as Enzo said something ridiculous behind them. “The Beaches is for lovers,” Sami mused as he swung his hand with Finn’s, taking a lick from his own cone. “Told you it can’t get more perfect for July.”

“Well, I can think of a way,” Finn mused as he looked back at Sami. “You said we get the master bedroom, right?”

“Yeah, Xavier insisted. Why?”

“Oh, a few reasons,” Finn said with a devious smile and an eyebrow waggle.

Sami felt himself blush as he looked away from Finn. “Man, we’re in public.”

“I know,” Finn chuckled. “But c’mon… After pizza, cake and the fire pit. I have priorities.”

“God, you’re so hot. Did you know that?”

“I don’t know… I could stand to hear a little more…”

Sami leaned in towards Finn, kissing him gently with sweet and sticky lips. He tasted like sugar, caramel, the lake, and summer sweat.

Like July.

Perfect.

\---

“So baby don’t moooove at aaaall… Cause you’re about to break my faaaall...”

Roman sat in his camp chair, strumming his guitar and singing a song he learned back in college. Dean would occasionally join him in the lower register, bolstering a bit of harmony to him.

“Quite good on their own, huh,” Finn whispered as he cuddled against Sami on their towel.

Sami chuckled as he kissed the top of Finn’s head. “Is that something against my bass skills?”

“No no,” Finn assured. “I just wonder why you need Seth at all.”

“Oh, a few reasons,” Sami sighed as he took a sip of his Coke. “Want more pizza?”

“I really shouldn’t, but I’m gonna say yes anyway.”

“Then I’ll oblige.”

Sami kissed him on the head again before standing up and walking back over to the picnic table where they were keeping their food. The beach was pretty abandoned at night compared to the day, so they didn’t have to worry about randos stealing the good stuff.

Though, Sami apparently did have to worry about speaking of the Devil as he saw Seth sitting at the table, scrolling through his phone. “I was wondering where you went off to.”

Seth looked up at Sami briefly before he sighed and put his phone back down on the table. “Yeah, I just wanted to check some messages, I guess. Got distracted.”

“Well, don’t let me bother you,” Sami said as he opened one of the pizza boxes and grabbed a couple of slices.

“Getting that for you and _Finn_ ,” Seth asked, his voice dripping with disdain at the last syllable.

“Dude, are you still mad about the volleyball,” Sami sighed. “He apologized later, even though you were absolutely being a dick to Carmella.”

“No, it’s not that. Okay, maybe a little,” Seth admitted. “But something about your boyfriend doesn’t sit right with me, man. Like how much do you _really_ know about him?”

“I know enough.”

“C’mon Sami, how do you even know if Finn Bálor is his real name? That sounds fake as hell.”

Sami cast a withering look at Seth as he closed the pizza box. “I’m sorry, is your legal first name ‘Colby’ or not?”

Seth pursed his lips before letting out a sigh. “Okay, point. I just don’t know if I fully trust him personally.”

“Based on what, Seth?”

“I don’t know. My gut.”

“Your gut also told you getting in a relationship with Charlotte that one time was also a good call.”

“Look man, you’ve known me longer than him. Can’t you trust me on this?”

“Not really, because… Well one, you only see him once a week when he comes and hangs out at rehearsal with me, and I’ve never seen you have a full conversation with him where I’m with him multiple nights a week, and…” Sami groaned and rubbed his eyes. Did he really have to bring this up _now_? “And really Seth, you want to talk about trust when I’m still dealing with you violating mine?”

Seth’s face softened as he looked down at his lap, guilt immediately entering his body language. “Still mad about the Foreign Objects gig, huh?”

“You weren’t the one with the bad ex or who nearly got killed. In fact, you took that gig without asking anyone else and then asked me to be okay with it.”

Seth looked back up at Sami, then sighed. “No, you’re right.”

Sami’s eyes widened in shock. “I’m sorry, did Seth Rollins just admit he was wrong about something?”

“Yes, now shut up,” Seth stated before breathing deeply. “I… I really wasn’t considerate of you when I said yes. I just sort of saw the dollar signs and jumped in. You were one of the first friends I made here in this stupid city and you nearly died that night. I should have taken a step back…”

“Well, that’s the closest I’m ever going to hear the words ‘I’m sorry’ from you, so I’m gonna take it.”

Sami smiled a little. He then patted Seth on the shoulder, who looked up at him with a weak smile. “Thanks. I think.”

“Hey guys,” Bayley shouted from down the beach. “We haven’t done cake yet.”

Sami looked up to see the rest of their party begin to get up and move towards them, Finn taking up the rear. Sami smiled at Finn briefly before turning back to Seth. “Look. Just… give him a chance and don’t be a dick for once. I’m happy. He’s good to me.”

“Fine,” Seth said, holding his hands up.

Before Sami and Seth could say anything else to each other, Bayley came bounding up to the table and began searching through the Shoppers bag next to the cake. “Okay, so we got two threes, a two, and a five candle…”

“Aw, you didn’t go with my 67 candles idea,” Finn sighed playfully.

“That’s more candle than cake,” Bayley said as she ripped open the packets. “I did consider getting one of those flower ones, but Sasha shot me down.”

“Hey, you weren’t the one who nearly burned your house down with one at 15,” Sasha retorted.

Bayley just shook her head as she popped open the cake box. “We’re outside, but okay!”

Sami chuckled a little as he looked over at the cake. The frosting on the top was made to look a penguin riding on the back of a giraffe with the words ‘Happy Birthday Sami and Finn!’ spelled out in orange. “Did the woman at the bakery ask about your kids?”

“It was a dude, actually. I just lied and said you guys were two and five. He said I looked good for having two kids.”

“Gross.”

As Bayley put the candles on the cake, Finn walked over to Sami’s side and rested his head on his shoulder. “God, I can’t remember the last time I had cake on my birthday.”

“Well, this one is going to be good. Bayley and I spared only some expense. Which is probably why the giraffe looks so wonky.”

“I love that wonky giraffe, Sami. I love him so much.”

Sami swallowed as Finn said that, his heart picking up speed. “Yeah, well, I lov-”

“Okay,” Bayley stated loudly as she pulled out the lighter and began to light the candles. “Happy birthday to yoooooou…”

As the rest of their friends joined in the song, Sami sighed as he reached for Finn’s hand, squeezing it. Finn squeezed back and Sami’s heart jumped again.

The words were on the tip of his tongue constantly, but it wasn’t the right time. Not yet. Soon.

Maybe.

As the song finished, Sami closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He wondered what Finn would wish for.

He wished for courage as he exhaled.

He opened his eyes as the candles blew out, small tendrils of smoke rising from them as the rest of the group applauded. Finn pulled him towards him, wrapping his arms around his neck. “Happy birthday, Sami Zayn.”

“Happy birthday, Finn Bálor.”

He leaned in for a kiss, pausing for a second when he heard a groan from Tyler. Without a second thought, he wrapped his arm around Finn’s back and dipped him down further for the same kiss. As Finn broke away, he gasped with surprise and delight. “Oh wow… That was...”

“Romantic and infuriating for Tyler,” Sami asked with a playful grin.

“Something like that.”

Sami laughed as he pulled Finn back up and kissed him again. If that could qualify as courage, it was certainly a good start.

\---

Sami gripped the sheets in front of him, burying his head in the comforter as Finn’s thrusting picked up speed. “God… Fuck!”

Finn let out a low laugh as he leaned over and snaked his hand around his chin, leaning in closer. “Does that feel good,” he whispered.

“Yes,” Sami moaned, his face flush against the mattress.

Finn pressed his forehead to Sami’s back as he slowed down his rhythm, becoming slow and deliberate. Sami clenched and muffled another moan from his mouth. He felt Finn’s hands against his chest as he pressed his lips into his back. “You’re so hot when you moan like that, you know?”

Sami was about to retort, but his mind turned to jelly as Finn hit just right and his words melted into another moan. He could practically hear Finn smiling from satisfaction. _That bastard,_ he thought.

“Are you close?”

Sami nodded against the sheets, his enthusiastic “yes” muffled against them. 

Without second thought, Finn moved his hand down, grabbing onto Sami’s cock. As he began stroking, Sami’s vision went white as he squeezed his eyes shut. It was so much and not enough all at once. He arched his back up, letting out a low and guttural moan as he came into Finn’s hand. As Finn pulled out, Sami collapsed down onto the mattress, catching his breath. “You’re too good at that, y’know?”

“I could always step my game back if you wanted.”

Sami looked up at Finn, who was cleaning off his hand on a magenta towel that clearly belonged to Tyler. “Don’t you dare do that.”

Finn laughed a little before he reached down to take the condom off, throwing it off towards the trashcan that sat next to the bed. He laid down next to Sami, snuggling against his chest. “Good. I won’t then.”

“You didn’t come, did you?”

“No, but it’s okay. I was still having a good time.”

“God, now I feel bad.”

“Well, you can make it up to me in the morning if you want.”

Sami looked over at Finn, with his wicked grin and playful eyes. “Deal,” he said as he kissed Finn on the nose.

“You’re beard tickles,” Finn laughed as he rubbed at his nose.

“Ohhh?”

“No! Don’t do i-”

Before Finn could say anything else, Sami was on top of him, kissing his neck and face in rapid succession as Finn devolved into squirming and giggles. “Do you surrender,” Sami asked between kisses.

“Yes, yes,” Finn said breathlessly as he tapped on Sami’s chest. “I tap out!”

“CAN YOU TWO LOVEBIRDS SHUT UP,” Carmella shouted from the room down the hall. “WE’RE TRYING TO SLEEP.”

The two paused and looked at each other embarrassed for a second before looking back towards the door. “Sorry Carm,” Sami shouted back. As he looked back at Finn, the two devolved into silent giggling as they fell back onto the bed. “Worth it though,” he whispered as he kissed the buzz on the side of Finn’s head.

\---

Sami woke up in middle of the night, feeling the cool breeze off the lake floating in through the window. He looked over at Finn, peacefully asleep on his left, his mouth open slightly. Sami gently kissed him on the forehead, which caused him to stir slightly. “Going to the kitchen. Need anything,” he whispered.

“No,” Finn mumbled, still very much asleep. He resettled into the bed, pulling the blanket over him slightly.

Sami smiled slightly at that as he got out of bed. He grabbed his boxers off the floor and slipped them on before creeping out of the room, trying his best not to make noises against the hardwood floor.

As he walked down the hall, he peeked into the rooms to his right and left. On the left, Xavier and Tyler slept peacefully on an air mattress in the middle of Xavier’s game room. Xavier’s arm was draped over Tyler, who seemed to sleep with a scowl on his face as his eyes stayed covered by a satin mask. On the right, Enzo and Carmella seemed to pile on top of Cass in the bed as they snored. On another air mattress, Bayley held close to Sasha, practically dead to the world at this hour.

Sami creeped down the stairs, still doing his best to keep quiet. From the landing, he could see Seth passed out on the couch, his mouth hanging open and blanket pushed down to his waist to reveal his bare torso. “Man, even in his sleep he’s showing off,” Sami muttered.

As he walked into the kitchen, Sami switched on the overhead light from the oven as he searched for a glass in the cupboards. After finding one, he shuffled over to the fridge to get water from the ice dispenser.

“Sami’s cute, right?”

Sami looked up in surprise, trying to figure out where the voice had come from. He placed the glass on the counter and looked towards the back door, which was cracked open.

“I mean, yeah. If that’s your thing,” a deeper voice responded. Roman. Which had to mean the second voice was...

“So that’s a yes.”

Dean.

Sami gently walked over to the other side of the door, looking at the other side through an angle. In the incandescent light, he could see Roman and Dean leaning against the railing of the back porch, passing some sort of bottle between them. Had they actually stopped drinking today?

“I should have asked him out when I had the chance,” Dean lamented, taking a swing from the bottle. “I thought he was so cute when we met, but noooo, I had to look cool for the new bassist. Or whatever.”

“And now he’s dating a total hot model,” Roman mused, his voice drifting slightly from the alcohol.

“They’re his type, I think,” Dean slurred. “God, remember Antonio? That guy was like smack you in the face hot.”

“You’re smack you in the face hot,” Roman giggled, his voice deep and low, rumbling in Sami’s chest.

“Not as much as you, pretty boy,” Dean stated.

Before Roman could say anything else, Dean leaned in. The two pressed into each other, sloppy and uncoordinated as they kissed. Sami drew in a sharp breath as he turned back towards the wall. Quickly and quietly, he forgot about his glass of water as went back up the stairs towards the room he had with Finn. _What did he just witness?_

“Sami,” Finn mumbled from the bed as he looked up, his eyes barely open. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah,” Sami whispered, feeling out of breath. Had he been running? “Just… saw something outside. Probably a possum or something.”

Finn gave a tired nod before he gestured back to the bed. “Come back here. Enjoy the sea breeze with me.”

“It’s a lake, dear.”

“Whatever. Come back to sleep.”

With a deep breath, Sami nodded and obliged. He climbed back into bed, pulling their blankets over him as Finn wrapped his arm around Sami and nuzzled into his back. “Sorry if I woke you up,” Sami mumbled as he resettled into the mattress.

“‘S okay,” Finn muttered as he began drifting back off. “I’ll protect you from possums.”

“Thanks, I appreciate it.”

As Finn held tighter to him, Sami felt himself at ease again as he began to drift back. A thing drunkenly said by Dean didn’t matter for now. What mattered was here in this bed as the breeze drifted in, pressed to his back, swearing to protect him from what could possibly come in.

He could live in this moment forever...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A few quick notes:  
> 1.) Yes, the Beaches does exist and it is great. I even have a rock I saved from it.  
> 2.) Sasha and Bayley's team names are references to _Sailor Moon_ and _Steven Universe_ respectively.  
>  3.) Morelli's in Atlanta does have the better salted caramel ice cream. Fiiiiight meeeee.  
> 4.) The song Roman is singing on the beach is 'Don't Move' by Butch Walker.  
> 5.) Seth's legal name in this fic/universe is Colby Seth Rollins. There's only so much kayfabe I can break.


	10. The Next Step

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Leases, old flames and evil exes, oh my! What's a Sami to do?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I told you I was super hype about writing these chapters! I think this might be my quickest turn around on updates yet?
> 
> Also, I'm now the second longest fic in the Sami/Finn tag. I can't believe it got this far.
> 
> Thanks as usual to iggypup87 for being my enabler per usual. I forgot to thank him with the last chapter!

Sami was in a forest. A snowy one, with the underbrush crunching under his boots. Ahead of him, a fairy danced in the wood. “Hey! Up ahead! Come this way!”

“I don’t know, that doesn’t seem right…”

“C’mon dear, would the fairy lie to you?”

Sami turned around to see Finn sitting on his bike, leaning on it with a cool grin. Sami rolled his eyes with a smile as he disregarded the fairy and walked over to Finn. “It’s Saturday. Aren’t you off? And what about not riding through my head?”

“I am, but I’m just out for a ride this morning. And I think I just got turned around. You don’t tend to have forest dreams.”

“Yeah, well, Sasha was over last night playing video games and we-”

“HEY, LISTEN,” shouted the fairy.

“Oh hush, I’m talking to my boyfriend!”

Finn laughed as he leaned closer to Sami. “Well, don’t let me disturb your dreams before work.”

“A kiss before you go, at least?”

“Of course.”

As the snow began to fall through the trees again, Sami leaned in towards Finn, gently pressing his cold lips to Finn’s warm ones.

\---

Sami awoke suddenly, drenched in sweat. He heard a bike bell ring outside the basement, which mean Finn was riding by. Sami wiped the sweat from his brow as the front door opened and Bayley walked in with grocery bags. “Is the AC out?”

“Since late last night, I think,” she breathed. “Not exactly ideal in this heatwave.”

“Crap. No wonder I was dreaming about snow,” Sami mumbled as he sat up on the mattress. August was still young, but it hadn’t exactly been forgiving in terms of the heat so far. “You called Paul about it yet?”

“Why don’t you call him,” Bayley asked as she walked into the kitchen, fanning herself off with their mail. “You can actually start contributing to rent now.”

“Because he scares me and tolerates you!”

Bayley sighed and lovingly shook her head. “Fine I’ll ca- OH GODDAMMIT!”

Sami jumped up as Bayley screamed, ready to fight. “What? What’s wrong?”

“Mice got into the rice again,” Bayley groaned. Sami cast his eyes towards the open cabinet, a small stream of dried rice trickling onto the stove.

“Are you kidding me,” Sami sighed. This was the third time in two months this had happened. He knew their apartment was a wreck, but there was an expectation of some standards from their landlord. “He said the mice problem was solved last week.”

“I’m calling him now. I don’t care if he’s out until Monday. This needs to get solved.”

“Well, barring anything else being wrong, I’m gonna start getting ready for work.”

“Good luck trying to keep clean in this weather,” Bayley lamented as she dialed up their landlord’s office.

\---

“Hey there, welcome to Amena’s!”

Sami smiled brightly at the party of three coming in. For the past few weeks, he had been working as a host at a new Syrian restaurant not too far from his place where an old Second Cup had been. It was small, but it was nice and he liked being able to be the first face people saw walking in. He was good at that. He could set a mood when he wanted to.

Plus, having money to contribute to rent and to go out with Finn didn’t hurt either.

He thought of Finn in his dream as he set the table, all dressed for summer in a shirt and shorts starkly contrasted against the snow of his dream. It was cute and charming. Sami could feel himself getting a bit flustered thinking about it. It was one of those things he…

No. Not those words.

Sami walked back to the stand, sighing a bit as he did. He was good at this job, yes, but there were other things he was working on. Courage being one of them.

The bell on the door rang and Sami straightened his posture, immediately turning onto host mode. “Hi, welcome to Am-”

“Sami?”

Sami froze in surprise as he heard the voice. Soft and accented. As his eyes adjusted, he saw a bald man in a suit standing in front of him, lifting his sunglasses. “Antonio,” Sami said, half asking from surprise and half wondering if he was still in a dream.

The bald man’s face lit up as he reached over the host stand to wrap Sami in a hug. “I thought that was you! I didn’t think you would still be in Toronto.”

Sami, still feeling shocked and unsure, raised his arms to reciprocate the hug. Antonio Cesaro… Here… In the flesh. Yeah, he wasn’t dreaming anymore. “Yeah, no, still here. I even live around the corner and everything.”

“Well, don’t let me disturb you while you’re working.”

“Well, I mean, I gotta seat you and… um…”

Sami looked over to see a blonde woman in a pantsuit standing behind Antonio, her red lips pinched into a terse expression as she stared down Sami with an icy glare. He immediately felt nervous staring at her, but Antonio just laughed. “Oh, don’t mind Lana. We’re just here on business.”

“Which I would like to get back to,” she interjected, her Russian accent thick.

Sami nodded, scooping up menus and silverware as fast as he could. Was he shaking? He might have been shaking. “Well, right this way then.”

Without a second look, Sami lead them to a table for two seated in the back corner closest to the kitchen. He placed the menus and the silverware down as straight as he could in his daze of surprise. “Your server will be with you shortly. Enjoy!”

Before he could rush back to the host stand without a second look, Antonio stopped him, gently grabbing him by the arm. “Hey, Sami. It was good to see you. Call me sometime. I’m in Toronto for the next little while…”

He then handed Sami a business card that probably cost more than what he made hourly and gave him a wink. Sami felt himself get flustered again as he nodded. “O-Okay.”

Sami rushed back to the stand, where no one was waiting for him. Discreetly, he pulled the card out and looked over the number. Was this real? Was this some elaborate joke being played on him by an evil ex? Where were the exes anyway? Or had the past five years caught up with him in an elaborate hallucination.

He looked back at Antonio, who just shot him a gentle smile before returning to the conversation with the blonde woman. It certainly felt real… Whatever that kind of real was.

“Excuse me! Sami!”

Sami snapped back to reality to see Charlotte staring him down, arms crossed with Dana and Summer standing behind her. Sami tried his best not to let out an exasperated sigh. “Band meeting?”

“Yeah, though it’s none of your business.”

“I don’t care. Come this way.”

\---

“I’m sorry, who was this guy again?”

Sami looked back at Finn, his mouth stuffed with noodles. “Hm?”

“This guy,” Finn repeated as he swatted a fly away from his face. They had opted to eat out on the balcony of his apartment for their post-work dinner date, taking in the only time the summer heat was tolerable. “Cesar Romero or whatever…”

“Antonio Cesaro,” Sami said as he chewed his lo-mein. He swallowed before continuing. “He was like… a high class international businessman and the closest thing I had to a boyfriend between you and Kevin? Except we never really dated because he didn’t want commitment? I don’t know. I left that whatever that was really confused. Actually, I was really confused most of the time. I don’t know what he saw in me.”

“Because you’re cute and charming and all those kind of things in between,” Finn said with a smile as he took a bite of his chicken.

Sami felt himself getting flustered for the millionth time today, but for all the right reasons. “No… I mean, yes… I mean… It was just he was all rich and classy and I’ve never been any of those things. I mean, I was a bouncer at a gay bar at the time.”

“Is that how you met Bayley?”

“No, but I got that job because of her.”

“So this fancy, handsome businessman…”

“I didn’t say he was handsome. Though that is true.”

Finn cast him a sideways glance before he continued. “So this… guy you didn’t really date wants to take you on a date now that he’s back in town.”

“I didn’t say that either,” Sami stated. “He just… gave me his number.”

“He wants to take you on a date, dear,” teased Finn. “And you didn’t even mention you had a boyfriend.”

Sami huffed as he twisted the noodles around his chopsticks. “I mean, everything happened in the space of a minute while I was at work. I didn’t really get a chance to talk about you or my life in massive detail.”

“I’m kidding… Mostly.”

A silence fell between the two as Sami dropped his chopsticks. He reached over to Finn and placed his hand on his. “Finn, you have nothing to worry about. At most, I’m going to go out for coffee with him. I’m not interested in getting back together with someone who was more interested in sex than a relationship. I have what I need right here.”

Finn smiled weakly as he looked up at Sami. He nodded slowly, looking as if there were words he was uncertain of saying outloud. “Okay…”

Sami wanted to pry his mind, but maybe now wasn’t the best time. “Hey, you want to finish this inside and watch some cartoons?”

Finn’s face perked up at that. “I thought you’d never ask.”

\---

When Sami got home the next morning, he wanted to tell Bayley so much. About running into Cesaro, the business card, how weird Finn got about it when he told him. There was so much in his head that he had to get out to her.

Which is probably why it took him by surprise when Bayley was sitting down in the recliner, looking concerned. “Uh… Is everything okay?”

“I don’t know,” Bayley admitted, her voice sounding unsure. “I… Paul wants to meet with us tomorrow. Didn’t say why, but I don’t think it’s about the air conditioning.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah.”

“Want me to sit with you before work, _habibti_?”

“Yeah.”

Without another word, Sami took a spot next to her on the recliner. He hugged her close as they leaned back in the chair, a silent worry growing between them.

\---

“Oh god, I hate coming here,” Sami muttered as he fidgeted with his collar in the elevator.

“Stop messing with it,” Bayley whispered as she smoothed out her hair in the reflection of the doors. It was weird for Sami to see her with her hair down. “We want to look confident in the face of the dragon.”

“I think he’s more of a Hutt.”

“Sami!”

“What, it wasn’t a fat joke… Okay, maybe slightly and I apologize for that.”

“Just be nice when we get in there, okay,” Bayley asked as she straightened her posture and adjusted her purse

The elevator pinged and opened into a dark corridor decorated with even darker wood. The two of them turned down the hallway to a glass and wood door at the end of it. “Why does a landlord for apartments in Wychwood have an office in the financial district anyway?”

“I think we’re just a small part of his business ventures.”

The two walked into the office, where a secretary immediately greeted him and offered them water and snacks. They quietly declined before sitting down in an awkward silence for several minutes. Sami wanted to text Finn, but he wasn’t certain if that made him look better or worse in the eyes of their landlord.

Or their landlord’s secretary, as it were.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, the secretary finally stood up and looked at them. “Mr. Heyman will see you now.”

The two of them nodded as they stood up. She opened the door, letting them into an office darker than any they had been in before then, with only some sunlight coming through the blinds over the windows. Behind a desk covered in stacks of paper, a large man in a suit sat, staring them down intently. “Good morning, Mr. Zayn. Ms. Rose-Martinez.”

“Mr. Heyman,” Bayley responded with a polite nod. Sami could see her grip growing tighter on her bag. “How are you this morning?”

“Let’s just cut to the chase and skip the small talk, okay,” Paul stated, putting on his glasses as he picked up a sheet of paper. “Do you know why I asked you two to come in today?”

“Uh… Well our AC isn’t working and mice got into our cabinets again, but something tells me we’re not so lucky to get those fixed,” Sami answered, his voice slightly tinged with sarcasm.

“No, Mr. Zayn. Those will be taken care of later this week, so I’d appreciate if you’d cut back on the attitude,” Paul retorted. Sami shrunk back towards the wall slightly and Paul looked back towards the sheet. “No, the reason I called you guys today was to let you know that your rent for this month is covered…”

Bayley perked up at that news. “Oh, well, that’s a relie-”

“Because your lease is up.”

Bayley’s demeanor immediately dropped back. “Oh.”

Sami could feel his heart catch in his throat at the news. “Has it been two years already?”

“Yes, you two. It has,” Paul stated, taking his glasses off. “Now, you can continue living in the apartment month to month, but we will have to increase your rent if you do.”

“What? Seriously,” asked Bayley. Both Paul and Sami shot her a surprised look, which immediately made her cower back. “I’m just asking.”

“Your other option,” Paul sighed, his voice growing more annoyed, “is to move out by the end of the month. I know you two will probably need some time to think it over, so if you could please give me your answer by the 15th, that would be greatly appreciated. Now, please, get out of my office.”

Paul motioned with a thick hand towards the door and Bayley and Sami looked at each other awkwardly. “Thank you, Mr. Heyman,” Bayley muttered with a small nod as she opened the door and walked through it. Sami followed behind her, giving an awkward and dejected look to Paul as he did.

\---

The rest of their day had been silence. The elevator ride back down. Their walk to bus stop. The ride to Bayley’s office, where she only gave a quiet “see you later” to Sami before getting off. Sami rode the rest of the way back to Wychwood, hesitating on texting Finn about what had happened.

Later that night, when Sami came home from work, he found Bayley laying on the mattress in her underwear, staring up at the ceiling. He sighed as he kicked off his shoes. “You wanna talk?”

“Only if you lay down here with me,” she groaned.

Sami nodded and stripped down to his boxers before laying down next to Bayley, staring at the patterns in the ceiling. “So…”

“Do you like living here, Sami?”

Sami cast a look over at Bayley before he looked back at the ceiling. “I mean, it’s a shithole, but it’s home and you’re easily the best roommate I’ve ever had.”

“But do you want to continue living here,” Bayley asked, her voice sounding unsure.

“I… I don’t know.”

Bayley sighed as she rubbed at her face. “Look, I’m gonna be honest because you’re my best friend, but me and Sasha have been talking about maybe getting a place together when the lease is up here and… And that’s a step I’m ready to take with her.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah.”

Another bit of silence passed between the two before Bayley cleared her throat. “I… I know it’s a weird question, but have you considered… taking that step with Finn?”

“I mean, not really,” Sami answered, looking back over at her. “We’re still kinda new and I don’t know if that’s a part we’re ready to cross. And despite not being around for two months, we’re still dealing with his exes...”

“Right right,” Bayley said, nodding as she looked over at him. “Have you even said the L word to each other yet?”

Sami furrowed his brow at the question. “Why would we be talking about lesbians?”

Bayley blinked for a second before she started laughing. A small, sputtering one at first, but it then soon turned into a full belly laugh. It was in the middle of that Sami realized what she really meant and let out a small, embarrassed laugh of his own. As she wiped tears from her eyes, she looked back at Sami. “Okay, that answers my question, but maybe it is worth asking him. The worst he can do is say no and you have to live in the basement of the place me and Sasha will get.”

“You’re so mean.”

“But you love me.”

“Yeah, I do.”

Sami then curled up against Bayley, wrapping his arm around her and holding her close. If this was the end for them as roommates, at least it was still good.

“I’ll call Paul tomorrow and we can start planning the exodus,” Bayley said as she snuggled against Sami’s arm.

“Before you do,” Sami responded, “Do you want to try and get some fancy coffee tomorrow? I think I know a guy who’d be willing to pay.”

\---

“CESARO!”

Bayley bounded over to the bald Swiss man and gave him a giant hug. Antonio caught her with an “oof” and reciprocated the hug. “Bayley, good to see you! And Sami, of course.”

Antonio leaned over and kissed Sami on the cheek, causing Sami to blush. “Uhhh… yeah. Good to see you too, Antonio.”

“Though, I’ll be honest,” Antonio admitted, dropping his voice. “I thought we’d be going out for coffee just the two of us.”

Sami felt himself getting nervous and began scratching at his beard. “Yeah, well, me and Bayley have been having a weird couple of days with getting kicked out of our apartment at the end of the month and all, and you guys got along so well. I thought it would be a good outing with all three of us.”

That was only partially a lie.

“Look, I just need you to be there in case he gets… weird,” Sami had told Bayley earlier as they were leaving their place.

“Why don’t you just tell him you have a boyfriend,” Bayley asked, tightening her ponytail.

“I am! Today! It’s just he’s so… confusing and charming. I don’t know if he’s being friendly or hitting on me. It’s kind of how we ended up sleeping together in the first place.”

“And you’re just really anxious about dealing with that, so you need me to cockblock him?”

“Pretty much.”

“Got it.”

Which brought them to this moment, walking up to Zaza with Bayley practically chatting his ear off about Sasha and Carmella. So far, so good. 

Well… until…

Bayley came to a stop outside the shop, pointing at something. “Hey, is that Finn’s bike?”

Sami snapped back into the moment as he looked to see Finn’s bike parked outside the shop. “Huh… it is…”

“I’m sorry,” Antonio asked, sounding confused. “Who is Finn?”

Sami sighed as he rubbed at his beard. “He’s… He’s my boyfriend.”

“Boyfriend?”

“And he’s right there,” Bayley stated, pointing towards the window of the shop.

Sami turned sharply to see Finn sitting in the window, goggles up around his head and chatting with a woman in a black hoodie, black shorts and orange hair. So far, he didn’t notice Sami standing out there. “I… I guess he’s on his lunch break?”

As he walked in the door, he heard Cesaro drop his voice behind him. “Boyfriend?” He cringed a bit as the door closed behind him and the noises of the shop began to settle in.

“Oh c’mon, how great is this guy if you’re talking to me about how much you’re worried,” a woman’s voice asked. Irish and brash. Sami looked over to see the woman with Finn gesturing.

“I don’t really expect you to get it, Bex,” Finn sighed as he looked towards his drink.

“Well, does he have his sword?”

A silence fell over them before Finn looked up towards the ceiling. “No, he doesn’t.”

“Have you said that word?”

“No.”

“And does he know about me or the Twins? About what happened there?”

Finn rubbed at his eyes. This was clearly not the kind of lunch discussion he was wanting to have. “No, he doesn’t.”

The woman just shrugged as she took a sip from her drink. “Then I think I get it, Ferg.”

Before she could say anything else, Sami took a deep breath and walked over to their table. Finn’s eyes immediately lit up with surprise, relief and happiness when he saw him walk up. “Hey, Sami!”

“Hey babe,” Sami replied with a nervous smile as he hugged Finn. “I didn’t mean to interrupt you, but I was here to have coffee with Bayley and Antonio when I saw you.”

Finn’s face fell a little. “You’re here with Antonio?”

“And Bayley! Just friends, I promise.”

“Oh really,” asked the woman, leaning forward with a smug expression.

“Come off it, Becky,” Finn retorted. “I told you I trust him. You don’t exactly get to come back like this and judge.”

“It’s kind of in the job description, _Fergal,_ ” the woman named Becky responded, her last word pointed and sharp.

Sami’s head was swimming at all of this. “I’m sorry, who is Fergal and who are you?”

Becky cast another look at Finn. “Oh, you didn’t tell him?”

Finn sighed as he looked towards the ceiling, muttering curses under his breath. “Fergal is my legal first name. Finn’s a nickname.”

“Oh,” Sami responded, feeling suddenly confused and hoping that Seth wasn’t zooming in on his emotional state right now.

“As for who _she_ is,” Finn said, casting a look back at Becky. “This is Becky Lynch, one of my oldest friends...”

Becky raised her eyebrows at the statement. “ _And?_ Kind of missing an important detail there, Ferg.”

He sighed as he looked back at Sami, suddenly looking apologetic. “And one of my exes.”

Sami looked at them in shock for a second before the truth of what Finn just said really settled in. “Oh _no._ ”

“Sorry buddy, I’m number four,” Becky said, standing up and sizing herself up next to Sami. It was then he could clearly see the choker around her neck that she shared with the other exes, glaring and pointed. From the belts slung across her hips, she withdrew a sword and pointed it towards him. “Prepare to die, scumbag.”

Sami began to back up, his heart racing. “Uh… Finn…”

“I know,” Finn said through gritted teeth. “Get in the bag.”

“What?”

“Get. In. The bag,” Finn hissed, throwing his messenger bag on the floor. “And pass me a weapon.”

“Are you serious,” Becky asked, her voice peaking as Sami opened the bag and climbed into it. “You’re letting your boyfriend fight your battles for you?”

“No,” Sami insisted as he sunk into the bag, feeling his legs swing in Subspace below him. “I’m not! I just don’t fight girls!”

Becky huffed as she rolled her eyes. “You cannot be serious! You’re dating a coward too?”

“Hey, don’t talk to him like that,” Finn shouted as he picked up the bag. Sami swung a bit more, gripping onto the side of the bag and looking at Becky terrified. Finn then looked down at him and dropped his voice. “Hey… weapon. Remember?”

“Right! Sorry…”

Sami dropped one of his hands into the space, feeling mostly void at first until his hand brushed against something metal. He gripped onto it and pulled it up towards Finn, who grabbed it immediately. A titanium baseball bat. +1 against redheads of all shades.

“He’s cowardly, and you doubt how committed he is, but _I’m_ the bad guy here,” Becky asked incredulously as she pulled up her hood. “I think I’d be doing you a favor by chopping his head off.”

Finn just lowered his goggles and beckoned towards Becky. “C’mon Bex. Let’s take it outside.”

Becky swung her sword at Finn, who blocked it with the bat and a swift kick to her abdomen. She buckled over for a second, which allowed him to hit her with the bat and knocking her towards the floor before he gunned it out of the shop. “What are you doing,” Sami shouted, gripping on for dear life.

“Buying us some time,” Finn responded, digging his keys from his pocket. As they exited the shop, he looked over at Antonio and Bayley. “Bayley, trip her up if you have to! I gotta get out of here.”

“WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON, FINN,” Bayley screamed, her eyes wide at the appearance of Sami in his bag. Antonio’s expression was similar, but more quietly confused than hysterical.

“I’ll explain later,” Sami said, his voice frantic as Finn knelt over to unlock his bike. “We got an evil ex situation on our hands.”

“FERGAL,” Becky shouted as she leaned in the doorway of the shop. “COME BACK HERE!”

Sami cowered a little in the bag before he looked down at Becky’s shoes. “Finn, is she wearing roller skates?”

“Gotta go,” Finn responded, tossing his bike lock at Bayley and picking up the bat again. Before either she or Sami could say anything, he leaped onto the bike and began pedaling. Sami watched as Bayley and Antonio began to shrink in the distance as Becky began to pursue behind them.

As Finn merged into traffic, dodging cars, Becky shouted behind him. “C’mon Ferg, stop covering for him and let me at him!”

“You said it yourself, he doesn’t have a sword yet,” Finn bellowed as he blew past pedestrians and an oncoming streetcar. Sami screamed a little, but it went unnoticed. “It’s not a fair fight!”

“That’s rich coming from you!”

“What is she talking about,” Sami asked, his voice even more frantic with fear. “What are we even going to do?”

“We’re taking it to Subspace,” Finn responded, turning his eyes forward. “There’s a door up ahead. Hold on!”

As Finn picked up speed, Sami squeezed his eyes shut and gripped harder onto the bag. In an instant, the atmosphere changed from scorchingly hot and bright to cold and dark. Sami opened his eyes to see them coming to a landing on something resembling ground. It was kind of snowy, at least from the way it looked. It was weirdly pretty and a bit unsettling. 

“You remember what I said about having to fight girls eventually,” Finn asked as he got off his bike.

“Yeah, I remember,” Sami lamented. “I just didn’t think you were being so literal.”

“Well, the good news is that you get a mulligan today to take notes.”

“You know, if he doesn’t die first,” Becky piped in as she came to a landing on the ground, her hood dropping behind her. “I did teach you everything you know about Subspace.”

“And I taught you everything you know about fighting,” Finn responded, swinging the bat around in his hand. “Let’s go.”

Becky skated towards them, sword raised. Finn met her parry with the bat, blocking her and slowly pushing the sword back up towards her. He then headbutted her, causing her to stumble back, which caused him to hit her in the abdomen again, this time with the bat. As she buckled over, he hit her across the shoulders with it, which drove her down towards the ground. “Holding back on me, Bex?”

“Only because I might still be in love with you, Ferg,” she growled sarcastically as she stood back up on shaky legs. “But you wouldn’t know about that.”

“Or maybe you’re just rusty,” Finn said with a smirk as he tapped his bat against the ground. It sounded like metal against ice to Sami’s ears. “C’mon, show me what you got.”

Becky smirked as she skated towards Finn. As Finn prepared to block her, Becky arched wide and briefly disappeared from view. As Finn looked for her, Sami turned his head in the bag to see Becky skate up behind them, her sword raised. “Finn, look out!”

Finn spun around and gasped as she came towards them. Hurriedly, he raised the bat to block her, the metal _CLANG_ as they met echoing through Subspace.

“Rusty, huh?”

“Bex…”

Before Finn could finish his thought, Becky shoved him back. As Finn toppled over onto the ground on his ass, Becky sheathed her sword. “Just… Just save it, Ferg. I hope you’re happy, whatever that fuckin’ means to you.”

She then raised her hood back up and skated off, not giving the two of them a second glance. Sami felt a pang of sadness in his heart as he watched her disappear through a door. “Why is she leaving?”

“I don’t know,” Finn sighed as he stood himself back up. 

“Think she’ll come back for me?”

“Probably. She’s persistent. Always has been,” Finn responded, his voice low. He sighed again as he walked back over to his bike and picked it up. “C’mon Sami. Let’s go home.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those wondering why Becky calls Finn "Fergal," but neither Sheamus, Miz or Adrian did, I got you in the next chapter. Hang tight!
> 
> And with this chapter, the fic is half done! Whoa oh, we're halfway there!


	11. The Other L Word

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Between Becky, Antonio and moving, it's do or die time for Sami and those three small words.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ugh. This past month kicked my ass. I won't go into it, but sorry for making you guys wait so long. And let me know if you flailed as much reading it as I did writing it.

“Hey Sami, you can come out now.”

Finn placed the messenger bag on the floor of his apartment, holding his hand out to Sami. Sami reached for it and pulled up, spilling out onto the hardwood floor as he recovered to being in solid space again. “Oh thank God…”

“Still not used to it, huh?”

“The Subspace thing or the your exes trying to kill me thing?”

“Subspace, but the latter is also fair.”

Sami turned over and looked up at Finn as he sat on the floor next to him. “What happened back there, Finn? Or… what did Becky call you again?”

Finn let out a small laugh as he scratched at his beard. “Fergal? Yeah, that’s my ‘actual’ first name.” He threw up air quotes with a slight eyeroll before continuing. “My middle name is Fintan after my da though, so I just started going by ‘Finn’ towards the end of primary school and everyone just rolled with it.”

“Except for Becky?”

“Well, old habits die hard, I guess. Our families have known each other for ages. She’s one of my oldest friends if not THE oldest.”

“Well, don't let Seth know about the name thing.”

“What?”

“He thinks your name is fake.”

“Like I care about his opinion,” Finn huffed, rolling his eyes.

“Well, getting back to today… what happened with you and Becky,” Sami asked, sitting up and looking at Finn. “She looked really upset.”

Finn took a deep breath as he looked up at the ceiling before looking back at Sami. “I fucked up. Like I do most things.”

Sami felt his heart drop in his chest the way Finn said that, his voice cracking slightly. “No, don’t say that…”

“It’s true though,” Finn sighed. “I fucked it up. I was so heartbroken after Adrian that I sort of just fell apart internally. But there was Becky, ready to admit that she had a crush on me since we were kids. Of course, I thought it couldn’t hurt to get involved. I liked her enough…”

“But you didn’t…” Sami flinched at himself. Even in a context outside of himself, he couldn’t bring himself to say _that_ word. “Y’know… ‘3 Small Words.’”

Finn looked at Sami, his cheeks growing pink with embarrassment before he looked away again. “I mean, like a friend. A companion. But _love_ love? I tried, but it never came.”

“What about her,” Sami asked. In his heart, he felt like he already knew the answer to this question, but he needed to hear Finn say it.

“She loved me, yeah,” Finn admitted sadly. “Might still. Who knows. I didn’t want to break her heart, so I lied. Which only made it worse.”

“How so?”

“Have you ever tried moving to fix your relationship problems?”

“Why do you think I’m here?”

“No, I mean, while you’re still with your partner.”

Sami’s eyes grew wide before he buried his face in his hands. “Oh _noooo.”_

Finn just sighed, though more at himself. “Yep. We knew we were in a failing relationship, but we still moved to Japan together. That’s where it all exploded. It was a 12 hour argument that started in a convenience store and finished in the bedroom of our small apartment. The truth came out. She left. I stayed and dicked around for almost two years, both literally and figuratively. It’s not the worst break up I’ve ever had, but it still keeps me up at night sometimes…”

Sami looked back up at Finn, who just looked distant. “So why have lunch with her then?”

Finn looked over at Sami, a slight smirk on his face. “Why have coffee with Antonio?”

Sami felt himself get flustered. “I mean, I never hated the guy. I just maybe wanted to catch up and try to clear the air some.”

“Same with me,” Finn admitted with a slight grin. “I never stopped caring about her. Or Adrian, for that matter. It’s just… she’s an artist now and she’s in town with a show and I desperately wanted to see her, hoping she wasn’t… y’know…”

“Intent on killing me?”

“Yeah. She’s really quite lovely when she’s not pissed off, but I don’t exactly blame her for being so. Being in love with someone who doesn’t love you back is…”

“Brutal?”

“I was going to say torture, but yeah, brutal works too.”

A silence fell between the two of them, the air thick with words unspoken. Or maybe that was the fog of anxiety in Sami’s head. He wasn’t sure. Finally, he swallowed and looked back at Finn. “So… do you have any exes that might not kill me at this point?”

Finn chuckled at that, scratching at his buzz. “I don’t know. Zack or Karl maybe? Shinsuke and Hideo are toss ups. Kenny’s _kinda_ evil… Alexa definitely so…”

“Okay, okay,” Sami said, finding himself giggling. “You’ve dated a lot, I get it.”

“That’s true,” Finn admitted, biting his lip a bit. “But I like you the most.”

Sami smiled at that statement, feeling his chest constrict a little as he leaned in to kiss Finn. “You didn’t tell me you could fight…”

“I mean, I got some training,” Finn admitted between rapid kisses. “But I’m not as good as you.”

Finn leaned in further, kissing Sami slowly and practically crawling into Sami’s lap as Sami leaned back towards the floor. Sami cradled Finn’s head as he pulled away for a second, looking at Finn. “What about that sword Becky was talking about?”

“Don’t mind that now,” Finn breathed hurriedly, tucking his face into the crook of Sami’s neck. “I just want to be here right now with you…”

Sami shivered as Finn kissed and nipped at his neck. He still had questions about what Becky was going on about, but those were getting pushed further back and only one came to the top. “What about work?”

“I’m actually done for the day,” Finn admitted with a devious smile. “We can do whatever. If you want to, of course.”

“Of course,” Sami responded. “Though maybe somewhere more comfortable than your floor.”

Finn sat back up and held his hand out to Sami. “Well, let’s get at the couch and go from there then…”

Sami took his hand. “Don’t have to tell me twice.”

\---

“Holy shit, are you dead?”

Sami scrunched his nose at Bayley shouting over the phone. “I’m calling you, aren't I?”

“Well, where are you,” Bayley asked, her voice concerned. “Me and Antonio had a very awkward coffee date with me having to explain your love life.”

“Don’t worry, I’m not dead. I’m at Finn’s,” Sami replied, his ears temporarily switching to listening to Finn’s low singing echoing through the running water of the shower. “We sorta got... _distracted.”_

Bayley sighed. “Well, did you at least talk to him about moving in before you decided to fu-”

“Uhhh, not really? We kinda got talking about Becky instead.”

“Who’s Becky?”

“His ex. The one he was having lunch with. The one who chased us down with a sword.”

“Oh god, did you get hot and bothered talking about his hot redhead ex?”

“What? NO!”

The water in the shower turned off and the curtain rings slid against the rod with a _ssssshk_ noise. Sami dropped his voice. “Look, I gotta go. I just wanted to let you know I was okay. Bye now.”

“Ask him about moving in!”

_“Bye Bayley.”_

Before Bayley could say anything else, Sami hung up the phone and dropped the phone back on the nightstand with a long and frustrated groan. 

“Who was that,” Finn asked from the bathroom, his voice curious.

Sami rolled over to see Finn standing above the sink, rubbing his head down with a towel. “Oh, just Bayley. I was just responding to her five million texts from when I was in Subspace.”

“An accurate number, I’m sure.”

“Oh yeah, the most.”

Finn finished drying himself off before he crawled back into bed with Sami, curling against his chest. Sami wrapped his arm around him and breathed in the fresh scent of his freshly washed hair, closing his eyes. He could do this every day. Every morning, maybe. This is what he wanted. He had to at least _ask_ if it could be a possibility. “Hey, so. I need to talk to you about something.”

Finn looked up, resting his chin against Sami’s chest. “What is it?”

“Well, I wasn’t really sure how to tell you before, but…”

“Yeah?”

Sami sighed. This could be the time, but he still couldn’t say it. Still, he did need to talk about that other, more pressing matter. “Well, Bayley and I are getting kicked out of our place at the end of the month, and she’s looking to get a place with Sasha.”

“Oh,” Finn said, his voice soft. “That sucks. I know how much you two loved living together.”

“Yeah, but she needs to take that step with Sasha, which I understand and respect, but kinda leaves me in the lurch.”

Finn’s eyebrows knitted together with concern, which immediately caused Sami’s stomach to twist in knots. “What’re you saying?”

The knots grew tighter and Sami’s mouth began to dry out. “Well, this was Bayley’s suggestion, but I think it could be a possibility I’d be okay with. And that’s… could I… maybemoveinwithyou?”

Sami took a deep breath and squeezed his eyes shut as soon as the words spilled out of his mouth. How was Finn going to take that question? Yelling? Kicking him out? Breaking up? 

Sami wrenched one eye open to look at Finn, who was sitting up with his lips pursed. “I… I really don't know, Sami. We’ve only been dating for a few months.”

“Yeah, I know, but it’s been going well and I don't have a lot of things to move in here.”

“I know, I know,” Finn reassured. “Just give me a couple of days to think on it, okay?”

“Okay,” Sami whispered. While it was a better answer than he could have hoped for, he could still feel his heart deflate at Finn’s response. “I’m sorry, I shouldn't have brought it up like this.”

“No, you’re fine,” Finn said, his voice comforting as he leaned back in towards Sami, running his fingers through his hair. “This one is all me.”

Remembering Becky’s words from the cafe earlier that day, Sami wasn't certain if he believed that.

\---

“Hey! Listen!”

Sami growled in frustration at the fairy as he wandered through the snowy woods ahead of her. This had been going on for hours now. “No…”

“Hey! Listen! That’s not the right way!”

He spun around on his heels, pointing his sword accusingly at the fairy. “No! Listening to you has gotten us more lost!”

“Well, that’s un-fair-y of you…”

Sami gasped and felt a whole new sort of chill go down his spine. _Becky._

Quickly, he turned around and went for a spinning strike towards her legs, but she just jumped over the blade and landed back on the ground under it. “Missed me,” she said in a teasing tone as she dropped her hood. “Though maybe you’re not completely useless with swords.”

“I took longsword proficiency in grade 5,” Sami admitted as he stood back up. “Though why am I even talking to you about this?”

“Well, I came to kill you, but I think I’m more fascinated by what’s going on in here,” Becky admitted as she looked around. “An entire Subspace highway running through your head…”

“Yeah, I still don’t know what that means,” Sami grumbled before he looked back at Becky. “Wait, are you that thing that has been trying to kill me in my dreams for months now?”

Becky raised her eyebrows in surprise. “What? No, man. I didn’t try to kill you until after Adrian was long gone, and this is my first time in your weird, weird head. The exes got a specific order of operations here, though I wouldn’t put it past Hunter to violate that.”

She rolled her eyes, which caught Sami by surprise. “So why bother working for him?”

Becky glared at Sami and crossed her arms. “Hey, I don’t have to tell you my life story, okay?”

“Sorry,” Sami mumbled before looking down towards the ground. “I mean, Finn told me enough and… Sorry. Again.”

Becky sighed. “No, don’t apologize. It’s my fault for being so dumb… God, I was just so in love and…” She paused for a second before angrily shaking her head. “No. I’m not letting you in on this.”

“I wasn’t trying to… get in on that, whatever that is,” Sami assured gently.

“Good,” Becky said, pulling her hood back up and turning around.

“Wait,” Sami said, his voice tainted with confusion. “Aren’t we going to fight?”

“Oh, we will,” Becky said, facing back towards him. “But this isn’t the right place. For the record though? You’re going to want me to kill you. Because the three exes after me are much worse…”

Sami’s eyes went wide as Becky turned around with a smirk and began walking away. However, she paused and turned back towards Sami once more. “Oh, one more thing, Sami Zayn?”

“Yeah,” Sami asked. He subconsciously pulled up the shield and sword, ready for a fight.

“Just tell him already, you dummy.”

\---

Sami snapped awake, catching his breath as he did. The air conditioner in the apartment rattled angrily. It was fixed, but for how long? Outside, he heard the sound of roller skates on pavement. Inside, it was the sound of some Korean soap opera coming from the TV. Which meant only one thing...

“What’s got you bothered,” Sasha asked from the recliner, not taking her eyes off the TV.

“Where’s Bayley,” Sami asked back, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes.

“Out,” Sasha answered, looking over at Sami this time. “She had some errands to run, but we’re going apartment-slash-house hunting today. Still doesn’t answer my question though.”

“Just very weird dreams as usual, Sasha. This time with the current ex trying to kill me.”

“Oh, the hot and terrifying redhead on roller skates?”

Sami raised an eyebrow at her for that. “Who told you all that?”

“Bayley. Duh.”

Sami sighed and scrubbed his hands over his face. “Well, I have one thing I’m not going to miss about living with her.”

“Liar.”

“Yeah, probably.”

\---

_Apartment hunting turned into date night. Don’t come home. Luv u._

Sami groaned as he trudged along their street, sweating through his work shirt. It was definitely for the best that Bayley remembered to text him this time, since Sami had accidentally walked in on a few of their dates and seen things he shouldn’t have more than once. Still, Finn hadn’t texted or called him since the day before, so he wasn’t sure if he’d be welcome at his place currently.

Sami hated this. He hated himself for being a coward. He hated that his home was being taken away by a greedy landlord. He hated the heat. He hated that the library was closed. As he began unbuttoning his work shirt, he wondered if Enzo and Cass were working tonight at Second Cup.

“Sami!”

Sami turned around to scream “what?!” at whoever called his name, but his heart froze as he saw Becky a few yards behind him, skates on and her sword at the ready. “Oh no…”

“Sorry, buddy,” she said as she began rolling towards him.

Without a second thought, Sami turned and began running. Ignoring the heat and the thick air, he ran up the street and around the corner as fast as he could. He wasn’t as lucky to be strapped to a moving Finn this time, so he had to run and keep an ear out for those deadly skates.

“Come back here,” Becky shouted as she began to gain ground on Sami. “Face me already!”

She swiped past Sami, who quickly ducked and double backed. Becky stopped herself and began to turn, which bought Sami some time as he re-turned a corner back towards the park. He needed to get out of here. He needed a magic bus or taxi or…

Sami stopped dead in his tracks, partially to catch his breath, but to mostly stare in awe of his luck.

 _A door._ White with a black star.

He had never been in Subspace by himself before. The whole thing was a frightening prospect, which only made Sami’s heart beat even faster with anxiety.

Not any more than the sound of Becky’s skates getting closer though.

With the deepest breath he could manage, Sami grabbed the doorknob and pushed open.

\---

It felt like falling without Finn’s hand to hold.

Sami wanted to scream the entire way down, but no scream would come.

He wanted to keep his eyes open to see where he was going, but the coldness of the air around him made them water and forced them shut. For the few seconds he could keep his eyes open though, he could see something in the distance. Shadowy and pulsing. Not sure of where else he could go, Sami tried his best to steer his falling body towards it. He squeezed his eyes shut again for a few moments, counting the seconds slowly before he opened them again. It seemed to work since it was looming closer. A mountain? A castle? Sami couldn’t really tell.

With a slight thud and a loud “oof,” Sami landed on his ass on what felt like stone. He reopened his eyes to find himself in front of what was indeed a castle, with large stained glass windows in the front and an open wood door. Slowly, Sami picked himself up and began walking in the door. “Hello,” he shouted. “Sorry to be rude. I’m just kinda lost.”

Nothing answered. Sami proceeded.

The room inside the door was long and shadowy. As Sami walked in, he could see the outline of a large and imposing man sitting on a throne covered in shadow. What Sami could see looked like a crowned skull where his head should have been. At his feet sat another figure, cast in the dim light of the castle. They were muscular and mostly naked except for a pair of shorts and a collar around their neck. Whoever they were, they looked content. Like this is where they wanted to be.

As Sami stepped closer and could see the figure’s features outline more, he gasped. “Finn?”

The figure at the foot of the throne looked up from his state of contentment, which quickly turned to horror. “Sami,” an Irish voice gasped. It was definitely Finn. “What are you doing here?!”

Before Sami could say anything, Finn stood up and began advancing towards Sami. “You’re not supposed to be in here!”

“I’m sorry, Finn,” Sami gasped. “I just used Subspace and got lost!”

“Get out,” Finn growled, his voice dropping. For a second, Sami could swear he was gaining protrusions and claws. “GET OUT OF MY HEAD!”

Sami braced himself against the glass window, nowhere else to go. Finn leapt at him, pushing him through. As the glass broke in the most monstrous and loud echo, they both fell, the air violently whistling past them as they did.

\---

Sami rolled out onto the yard in front of Finn’s house. He felt Finn’s body on top of him, pushing him down towards the ground. “Finn! Finn! It’s just me! I’m sorry!”

He looked up at Finn, who looked like he normally did. Jeans, a t-shirt with Benny the Spaceman on it, and human face with blue eyes sparking with anger. “What the hell were you doing back there?!”

“I’m sorry,” Sami said again, his mind racing. How the hell did they even land outside of Finn’s house? What was even going on back there? “I was walking around after work and Becky was chasing after me and I was just trying to escape and a door popped up a-”

Finn’s eyes softened as he put his fingers gently on Sami’s mouth. His voice dropped to a whisper as he readjusted to his surroundings. “Okay. It’s okay. You didn’t know…”

“Did I go in your head, Finn,” Sami asked, his voice quiet and concerned.

“Yeah, but forget what you saw, okay? I just sort of passed out on the couch and was having a shitty dream. It’s not your concern.”

Sami’s brow knitted with confusion as he looked up at Finn. “I… okay?”

Finn sighed as he leaned his forehead against Sami’s before standing back up. “I’m sorry about that, Sami. I didn’t hurt you, did I?”

“I don’t think so,” Sami admitted, his voice still shaking a little as he got to his feet. “I mean, not physically.”

Finn’s face twisted again into a look of sadness and discontent. “God, again, I’m sorry. I just… I lashed out.”

“Hey, it’s okay,” Sami assured.

“No it isn’t,” Finn shouted before realizing his voice was too loud for this hour of the day. He dropped it back down, looking down at his shoes dejectedly. “I shouldn’t have done that.”

“Finn…”

“Maybe you should go,” he mumbled, turning back towards the door.

“But… I got nowhere else to stay right now,” Sami admitted, remembering the text from Bayley.

“Sorry, _mo a-,_ ” Finn started, but stopped himself before he could finish his thought. “Sorry Sami. Tonight just isn’t the best night.”

He then turned back towards the door and opened it. Sami felt a pit growing in his chest. “Just… Finn. Tell me what I did wrong.”

Finn said nothing else. He just looked back at Sami sadly before walking back inside his apartment. Sami just stood there in shocked silence, unsure of what to make of what just happened or to even say at this moment. He let out a frustrated yell as he buried his face in his hands. The edges of his vision blurred. Did he just fuck everything up again? What even happened back there? How could Finn look at him so angry and so sad all at once? How could he fix this? Could he even fix this? Was he just doomed in love and most everything else forever?

Above him, he heard a satisfied laugh. Sami looked up, his vision still swirling and making the sunset seem even more fiery. There was a figure in front of him, roughly his shape with his eyes, looking at him with a smug smile. Sami squeezed his eyes shut and screamed. “NO!”

As he reopened his eyes, his vision returned to normal and no one else was in the yard with him. The sunset was a sunset, and he was still alone with his thoughts.

He fell onto his back and groaned as he stared up at the sky. He couldn’t go home for the night, his boyfriend was acting weird and wouldn’t let him in, he had an evil ex on rollerskates trying to kill him, and he was sweating through all of his clothes again. Great. Just great.

Sami sighed as he pulled out his phone. Who was even available to let him stay with him? Enzo and Cass maybe, but he wasn’t ready for the gossip train to get back to Bayley. Perhaps the band, but he didn’t need to hear Seth’s gloating over how he was “right” about Finn. Not to mention things had been awkward for him, Dean and Roman since the beach trip, but he figured that was all him.

As he scrolled through his contacts, he came across one number that could possibly help.

He just wasn’t sure if he was ready to go that alone.

\---

“Hey Sami,” Antonio said as he opened the door. “Thanks for coming by.”

“Yeah, well, I should be thanking you for responding to my text,” Sami said as he ducked into the apartment, hands in his pockets. It wasn’t a large place, but it was still bigger and nicer than the place he shared with Bayley. Plus, there was a certain quality to it that screamed money. “I don’t know why I was surprised that you live in Yorkville now.”

“Is that weird,” Antonio asked as he walked behind Sami towards the kitchen. “Need anything?”

“Water would be great,” Sami admitted. He walked over to the living room outside of the kitchen and plopped down on the couch. From there, he could see the corner windows that looked out over a small part of the city, which was beginning to light up. “And not weird. Just means you make more money than I ever will.”

Antonio laughed slightly at that as he poured water into a glass for Sami. “Probably, but that shouldn’t really matter.”

“Says a guy with money. By the way, sorry for trying to use you to get coffee the other day.”

Antonio rubbed at his neck awkwardly as he handed Sami the glass. “I guess you have a point there. And I think I would have done the same.”

Sami chuckled a little bit as he took a sip from the glass. As the couch shifted some as Antonio sat next to him, Sami tensed up a little. “So, Bayley told me she filled you in on my love life issues.”

“A bit, yeah,” Antonio admitted. “Why didn’t you tell me you had a boyfriend now?”

“I didn’t really get a chance to,” Sami sighed. “I was going to tell you at coffee with Bayley, but then there was an evil ex on skates chasing after me with a sword.”

“Sounds complicated.”

“Weirdly enough, I think the exes are the most straightforward thing in my life right now.”

A silence fell between the two of them for a few seconds as Sami thumbed his glass, looking out the windows. He knew Finn probably had to be mad at him right now, but he still couldn’t help but worry about him. He just looked so sad before he left.

“Sami,” Antonio started, his voice low. “Do you… ever regret the way things ended between us?”

Sami looked over at Antonio, feeling confused. “What? I mean, I wish it had been better, but I don’t know if ‘regret’ is the right word.”

“How do you mean ‘better,’” he asked, sounding curious.

“I don’t know,” Sami shrugged before looking down at his shoes. “That things could have been clearer. That I could have left that whole thing feeling like I actually had done something with my time instead of feeling confused about what we were. And saying this outloud makes me understand Becky a little more…”

Antonio’s face twisted in confusion. “Who?”

“The redheaded girl on roller skates who...? Y’know, never mind.”

Antonio just chuckled as he looked towards the ceiling. “You know Sami, I try not to be a man of many regrets, but that doesn’t mean I don’t have a few. And the way things were with us was something I really regret.”

Sami felt himself begin to sweat again. Or was it nerves? Anxiety? After today, he was giving up on trying to differentiate. “What are you trying to say to me right now, Antonio?”

“That I’ve thought about you a lot since I left. That I wish I hadn’t left you in Toronto three years ago feeling so confused. That maybe we should have dated instead of me being so afraid to commit to anyone,” Antonio admitted. He then looked at Sami, his brown eyes softening. “That maybe we could date.”

Suddenly, he slowly began to lean in, his lips going towards Sami’s. For a second, Sami felt himself being three years younger, desperate for love after hurting from Kevin for two years. Sami of three years ago wanted this. He wanted someone that actually cared about him. Thought about him. Not just someone who maybe did, but only called when he was free and bored. Antonio was handsome, kind, intelligent, and well-travelled. He’d be crazy not to want that.

But that flashback to who he was only lasted for a second. Sami of now realized he had that, and he was back in Cabbagetown having a possibly terrible night.

“What the hell are you doing, Antonio,” Sami asked, pushing himself back from him in confusion.

“I… I was telling you how I felt,” Antonio responded, sounding confused. “What’s wrong with that?”

“Nothing, except you tried to kiss me when you know I have a boyfriend.”

“That you didn’t tell me about.”

“Because I didn’t have a chance to at work or before we tried to go out for coffee.”

“That you brought Bayley too.”

“Because, somehow, I know you’d try to do this,” Sami groaned as he stood up off the couch.

Antonio sighed as he rubbed his eyes. “Okay, I’m sorry for that. I really am, but why is this Finn guy so important to you? He wouldn’t even let you stay at your house tonight and his exes are literally trying to kill you.”

Sami squeezed his eyes shut and looked up towards the ceiling, trying to keep himself from tearing up about this. He thought of Finn and the way he looked in the mornings before he woke up. The way he laughed at stupid jokes in cartoons, banked corners on his bike, and seemed to constantly forget about turning his tea kettle on until after it had turned itself off 20 minutes prior. He then looked back at Antonio. “I care because he’s the first person in five years to actually make me feel like I’m not some hopeless loser. I care because he’s kind of silly, but it somehow makes him more beautiful. Because he hurts as much as I do and he tries to hide it so he doesn’t worry me, but it does. Because I love him...”

Sami gasped at himself and covered his mouth as soon as he realized what he said. Antonio’s eyes widened at the statement. “Oh… I didn’t realize it was…”

“It’s the first time I’ve said it outloud,” Sami admitted, feeling guilty about it. “I’m sorry, Antonio. Thank you for letting me in, but I have to go.”

Before he or Antonio could say another word, he bolted out the door. He had somewhere he needed to be, and it definitely wasn’t here.

\---

“Finn! Finn! I need to talk to you!”

Sami felt desperate standing in Finn’s yard like this at nearly 11 at night, shouting for him, but after practically running for thirty minutes from Cesaro’s place to be here, he didn’t feel like waiting anymore.

From the front window of Finn’s apartment, he could see Finn’s figure looking out, though he couldn’t see his expression. Then, the figure ducked out and a few seconds later, Finn was opening the front door and looking confused. “Sami, what the fuck are you doing out here?”

“Look, Finn, I’m sorry, but I just needed to see you. I’ve had a weird day and I need to talk to you?”

“Okay, but can you come inside,” Finn asked, desperate and confused. “I don’t need the neighbors yelling at me for you yelling.”

Sami nodded as he walked up the steps of the porch and into the foyer. He didn’t really stop to wait for Finn, just trudging ahead up the stairs to Finn’s place and pushing through the unlocked door.

“What was he on about, Fer- HEY!”

Sami’s reeled back as he saw Becky on Finn’s couch, reading a copy of _Ranma ½._ “What the hell are you doing here?”

“Fergal was letting me crash on the couch tonight,” she said, scrambling to stand up and grab her swords. “Though I could ask you the same question?!”

“Oh god, can you two please not fight in here,” Finn bellowed as he walked back in and closed the door behind him. “I would really like to get the safety deposit back whenever I move.”

“Fine,” Becky huffed as she unsheathed one of her swords. “Sami Zayn, meet me in the backyard. You’re not avoiding this any more.”

“Okay fine,” Sami sighed. “Can I just talk to Finn before you try to kill me?”

Becky pursed her lips in frustration before sighing angrily and walking towards the door to the balcony. “Five minutes. Then? Meet me outside.”

Sami watched as Becky pushed the door open, then climbed onto the wooden bannister of the balcony. With a delicate spin, Becky looked back at Sami with a glare before dropping out of sight into the backyard below. “So dramatic…”

“Okay,” Finn said, his voice teetering on the edge of frustration. “What is it? What is it that you so desperately need to talk to me about that you ignored what I told you and started shouting for me in the middle of the night outside of my apartment?”

“Well, first, why was Becky here,” Sami asked, genuinely curious.

“I don’t know,” Finn sighed, running his fingers through his hair. “I guess her AirBNB expired and she needed a place to crash for the night. She asked after you left though. I wasn’t going to do anything, but I was just such a mess after that that I felt like I couldn’t say no to her after everything…”

“Well, you weren’t the only one.”

Sami then walked up to Finn, taking his hands in his. “Look, Finn. I got sexiled from my apartment tonight, chased down by Becky after she had walked into my dreams this morning, and I think I accidentally did what you always try to avoid with me. Which is probably why I called Antonio when you left me in the front yard.”

“What,” Finn asked, his face falling as soon as Sami admitted that.

“No no,” Sami reassured. “It’s not what you think. Well, he tried to make a move on me, but I told him no. I told him…”

“Told him what?”

Sami breathed in deep. This was it. Now or never. Go for broke. Time to be courageous. “Finn, I know you’re just as messed up as me, even though you don’t like to talk about it. But I know I don’t care about that stuff. I know what I do care about is how I feel when I’m around you. How you make me feel like I’m important. Like I’m special. I like waking up next to you. I like your eyes, your scars, your laugh, your Legos, the way you ride your bike…”

“What are you trying to say, Sami,” Finn asked, his voice crackling slightly with emotion.

Sami just smiled as he held Finn’s face in his hands. “The thing I should have said ages ago the moment it first landed on my tongue in a word that literally means ‘beloved.’ Finn Bálor… I love you.”

Suddenly, Sami felt a sharp and burning pain in his chest. He stumbled back away from Finn, who was reaching out towards him. “Sami!”

A bright orange flame emerged from Sami’s chest. He initially felt the need to scream, but then he realized it wasn’t spreading all over him. Instead, from the middle of the flame emerged a hilt, with a jeweled heart as the pommel.

+3 to heart, +2 to guts and will. Suddenly, he knew what Becky meant by a sword.

Slowly, Sami gripped the hilt and pulled it from his chest. For a brief moment, the flame surrounded the sword as Sami held it with both hands. He looked over at Finn, who just stared at him in awe. “I think my five minutes are up.”

“Sami, I…”

Before Finn could finish that thought, Becky shouted from outside. “C’MON OUT SAMI! I AIN’T GETTING YOUNGER DOWN HERE!”

Sami looked at Finn and briefly kissed him on the lips. “See you soon.”

“Sami, wait!”

However, Sami was already on the balcony, leaping over the ledge into the yard below. He landed on his feet and stood up to full height to face Becky, who was just looking at him with a satisfied smirk. “Finally earned your sword, I see.”

“Yep,” he said, admiring it slightly. “It suits me. I think I’ll name it after my favorite Huey Lewis song.”

“What? ‘Sledgehammer’?”

“What? No. ‘The Power Of Love.’ What makes yo-”

“Nevermind,” Becky shouted, feeling flustered. “It doesn’t matter what you named your stupid sword. Are you actually going to face me this time?”

“Better late than never,” Sami said, holding the sword out in front of him at the ready. 

Becky spun the hilt in her hand before bracing it over her head. “Well then, come at me, bro.”

With a deep breath, the two ran at each other. In the middle of the yard, the steel of their blades clashed. Becky pushed down against his, forcing Sami to bend back. He ducked down and swept at her feet with a kick, causing her to fall off her balance and onto her back. As she kipped up, Sami ran to the other side of the yard. Becky just smirked. “That’s all you got?”

“Just getting started,” Sami said, smiling back at her. “You?”

Becky just rolled her eyes as she started running towards Sami again. As she leapt up, Sami jumped up to face her, closing his eyes…

_Sssssssshk!_

As he landed in a crouch, Sami reopened his eyes. He was holding the sword off to the side and he could feel blood trickling down his cheek. “You alright back there, Becky?”

“You… dick,” she muttered.

Sami turned to see her doubled over on the ground, her sword planted in the yard in front of her by one hand and the other around her middle. Immediately, a feeling of worry came over Sami. He knew what was next. “Hey, are you okay?”

Becky just laughed as Sami dropped his sword and ran over to her. “Really? You nearly slice me in half and you ask if I’m okay?”

“I think I’m allowed to be concerned about my opponent,” Sami retorted as he knelt down next to her.

“God, I can see why he loves you,” she muttered.

Sami’s eyes went wide with surprise. “What?”

“Nothing. I’ll be fine,” she admitted with a sad and bloody smile. “Hunter may not be happy about it, but I’ll live. You though? Enjoy what little time you have left because if you think I’m relentless, you’ve got another thing coming.”

Before Sami could ask her anything else, that familiar white light flashed. Sami covered his eyes and before he knew it, Becky was gone, with only her sword and a flurry of small birds, squirrels and raccoons running off in her place. Sami jumped back as they did, feeling a bit sad as he watched them run away. He looked back at her sword, finally noticing the steampunk charms she had threaded through the pommel as they fluttered in the night breeze. Wherever Becky really was, he hoped her ending would be better than this.

“Sami!”

He looked up to see Finn vaulting over the ledge and landing down in the yard. Sami ran over to meet him, but Finn practically hit the ground running as he met Sami in the middle and jumped on him. Sami stumbled back and fell, but Finn held tight, kissing him all over. _“Mo ghrá, mo ghrá, mo ghrá,_ are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine, though careful, I think Becky cut my face.”

Finn didn’t seem to care though, he just held Sami’s face in his hands. “Did you mean what you said back there? That you love me?”

Sami just smiled awkwardly as he rested his hands on Finn’s waist. “I mean, a flaming sword did pop out of my chest when I said it, but yes, I was serious. I love you. I’m in love with you, I think I’ve been in love with you since the moment I opened my apartment door to see you, and I’m sorry it took me so long to say it.”

Finn laughed as he rested his forehead against Sami’s. “I love you, too. Probably from that moment you opened the door. And I’m sorry I’ve been so stupid and immature over Antonio and Subspace and Becky and all that. I was just so afraid that you didn’t. I was so worried you were going to walk away.”

Sami felt his insides warm up as Finn said the words. Even though it was humid and he had sweated through his work clothes multiple times today, he didn’t mind. “Well, I’m here. I love you, _habibi.”_

“And what does that _really_ mean,” Finn asked with a mischievous smile.

“My beloved,” Sami admitted. It felt good to finally say it. To no longer avoid the words.

“Well, I love you too, _mo ghrá,”_ Finn whispered happily.

“Okay, I’ll bite,” Sami said with a laugh. “What does _that_ mean?”

“My love,” Finn responded, a doofy smile growing across his face. “I wasn’t lying when I said I liked you the most.”

“I don’t know why I doubted that then,” Sami said, gently kissing Finn on the lips.

\---

“Ugh, get a room, you two,” Sasha shouted.

Sami rolled his eyes as he pulled away from Finn. “I mean, I’m about to. That’s why we’re here.”

He looked back at the apartment for a second, then Sasha and Bayley as they unloaded his two boxes, suitcase and bass from the back of Roman’s hatchback. Roman just stood back, a slight satisfied smirk on his face. “Have to say, Zayn, you’re kinda trading up here.”

Sami looked back at Finn, then the apartment door. It still didn’t feel quite real that this was happening. The talk between him and Finn happened between the flow of ‘I love yous’ that had been bottled up for months and didn’t seem to know how to stop once they were unleashed. There was still a bit of uncertainty with this, but one thing was clear: they both wanted this. “You think so,” Sami asked.

“I don’t know,” Sasha admitted as she lugged Sami’s bass up the walk. “Me and Bayley did find that sweet little place in Riverdale!”

“Yes! Near Chinatown and the Beaches,” Bayley said excitedly. “It’s small, but it’s ours!”

“Yeah, well, same here,” Finn said happily as he opened the door for them. “Now c’mon. Let’s get moving.”

They didn’t have long to stay there. They still had to get everything out and cleaned up at their old place and Sasha’s and over to their new place. It was going to take up so much more of the day, which is why Sami was thankful his friends were willing to band together on this. Even Antonio, who seemed to enjoy lifting heavy boxes with Enzo and Cass over at Sasha’s apartment. Quickly, they dropped everything in Finn’s living room, promising to go through them later once everyone else was moved and dinner was had.

“Okay, easiest move of the day,” Bayley breathed as she wiped sweat from her nose. “Back to Wychwood!”

“Ready to go,” Finn asked to Sami as he ushered everyone out of their place and down the stairs.

Sami looked around Finn’s place, which was now also his. Theirs. _Together._ This was happening. It didn’t feel real. Like he was about to wake up from some dream or was going to be attacked by yet another ex in the middle of it.

He then looked over at the umbrella stand near Finn’s door, where Becky’s sword was sitting, back in its sheath and its charms waterfalling down from the hilt. Just in case she ever came back for it.

“Yeah, I’m ready.”

\---

“Okay, I think we’re all set,” Bayley said, looking around their old apartment as they finished picking up all the trash.

Sami couldn’t help but look around too. Everything felt so empty and hollow now, like the past two years hadn’t passed at all. “God, it looks as shitty as it did the day we moved in.”

“It does, doesn’t it,” Bayley sighed. “In a way, I’m gonna miss this place.”

“Yeah, me too.”

The two of them looked at each other with a sad look and Sami stuffed his hands in his pockets. “End of an era for us, huh?”

“Yeah,” Bayley said. “I know this is right for the both of us, but the idea of us not living together anymore after this long? It’s weird.”

Another silence, but this time, Bayley closed the gap between her and Sami with a hug. The two stood there for a long moment, taking in this last little moment before they closed that door behind them for the last time. “We’re still besties though, right,” Sami asked.

“Of course,” Bayley answered, snuggling her head against his chest. “And you know you can come stay in our spare room if shit goes South, okay?”

Sami laughed as he held Bayley tighter. “That’s a backup plan, not a guarantee.”

“I know, I know,” Bayley said with a smile as she parted away from him. “But I just wanted to remind you.”

“Which is why you’re the best friend a wreck like me could have.”

“You ready then?”

“As I’ll ever be.”

Without a second thought, the two broke apart from each other. Sami did a last idiot check of the rooms before Bayley turned out the lights. Once they knew it was all clear, Sami ducked out of the door, and Bayley closed it behind him, locking it with a final and decisive _click._

\---

“To the future,” Sami toasted over the table.

“You call that a toast,” Enzo asked, sounding offended. “We spend all day pulling off the greatest move in the history of moves and the best you can do is ‘to the future?’”

“Yeah,” Dean piped in over the crowd. “We all know the more accurate one is ‘to uninterrupted boning’ anyway.”

Everyone at the table laughed, Sami included. “Okay, okay. Maybe you’re right, but seriously. Thank you guys all so much. Whether it was heavy lifting, being the get away driver, helping with cleaning up, or just being moral support, me, Bayley and Sasha couldn’t have done this without you.”

“Hear hear,” Sasha said, pumping her fist in the air. The rest of the table cheered and clinked their glasses together. For Sami, it was quite a sight to see everyone together for this. Carmella sitting happily between Cass and Bayley while Enzo gabbed on with Dean on the other side. Roman and Antonio chatted away about family as Xavier and Seth argued something about the upcoming Madden game and Sasha and Finn talked about some anime Sasha was re-watching. Sami wasn’t certain when all of his friends would be together like this again, but he was going to enjoy it while it lasted.

\---

“You going to be okay over there,” Sami asked.

Antonio looked over at Sami surprised as they waited at the curb for their Uber drivers. Finn had gone back inside real quick for his nearly forgotten leftovers, leaving the two of them standing together on the curb. Even in a t-shirt and jeans, Antonio still looked suave. “Yeah… why do you ask?”

“I mean, with the whole helping me move in with my boyfriend thing.” Sami felt slightly embarrassed asking that, though he wasn’t sure what he was embarrassed about. 

“Oh, that,” Antonio chuckled. “I mean, you’re my one that got away, but I see how happy you are. Happier than you were years ago. I’d be a fool to try and impede on that.”

“So you’re not mad?”

“Mad? No. Maybe a bit jealous and sad, but I’ll get over it,” Antonio said as he walked over and hugged Sami. “Just be happy, okay?”

“O-okay,” Sami stammered as he reciprocated the hug.

As a black car pulled up and a driver asked for Antonio, he pulled away and shot Sami one last grin. “Be seeing you, Sami.”

He gave him a small wave before climbing into the car. Sami smiled a little as he waved back before the car took Antonio off into the night. Was that closure? If it wasn’t, it was the closest thing Sami was going to get to how the movies always made it felt.

“Antonio leave already,” Finn asked, coming up behind Sami out of the restaurant. 

Sami jumped a little, but then settled when he realized it was Finn. “Yeah, his car just showed up. Like I think ours is now.”

“Awh, I wanted to say goodbye to him,” Finn said, tucking the takeout box in his arm as he waved at the driver.

“Me of two weeks ago would be so shocked to hear you say that.”

“Shut up,” Finn chuckled.

“I love you.”

“Mmm… say it one more time?”

\---

“Oh, I love you,” Sami said as Finn passed him a cup of tea as they sat on the balcony. It had been one of the longest days of Sami’s life, but somehow, he was still wired. Perhaps Sleepytime would fix that problem.

Finn smiled as he sat down in the chair next to Sami. “You’re welcome.”

Sami blew over the mug to cool the tea down as he looked out over the backyard. It may have not been the most impressive view, looking right into another townhouse, but there was a certain beautiful way he could see the lights of Toronto begin to take shape over it. This was his new corner of the world for now, and it was more like the home he had been searching for since he left Montreal. “This is the life, isn’t it?”

“Like you could live in this moment forever,” Finn asked, grinning mischievously.

Sami looked over at him with a pointed look, but then started laughing. He remembered that line Sami tried before he nearly said it the first time. Of course he did. Still, he wouldn’t want anyone else to. Slowly, he reached over and grabbed Finn’s hand, staring at him like he was the night sky and every other wonderful thing in between. “Yeah, I think I could.”


	12. Screaming Insecurities

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Halloween is here for Sami and Finn. What's Halloween without a couple of old ghosts?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry. These next few chapters are gonna suck for everyone.

Summer had turned into Fall without major disruption. The weather cooled, bringing the tuques and jackets back out and the patio furniture back in. The Shield still practiced and Seth was especially excited about an upcoming battle of the bands he had managed to worm them into. “I hope our opponent is The Boys! And Charlotte! I want to show them up so badly…”

“Don’t you mean Charlotte and the Boys,” Dean asked, sounding confused.

“Nah, they apparently changed their name and have somehow gotten even more experimental,” Seth responded. “They apparently don’t have instruments now.”

“How is that different from any other pop star then?”

“I don’t know, man. Just roll with it.”

As for Sami, he felt like he was in his own experimental phase. Living with Finn had been going well, but there was a certain period of adjustment when going from living with Bayley the bestie to Finn the boyfriend. In some ways, it felt like before. In other ways, it felt like softly pushing at limits. Like was it okay to brush his teeth while Finn was showering? Which side of the closet could he take? How much could he let his things explode over the living room? How did Finn’s fridge feng shui work and would Sami mess it up with his? Would Sami’s weird habits bother Finn to the point he got kicked out?

Still, for the most part, it was going pretty well. Waking up next to Finn and knowing he could just walk to the kitchen and come right back with tea in the mornings was pretty great. Being able to stay after Finn left for work, to have privacy when he wanted it, and being able to actually have time and energy to cook together was even better. Plus, Finn didn’t mind the way he bounced his legs when he was really concentrating on something or the way he always managed to be singing something while cooking or showering. Just like Sami didn’t mind the weird voices Finn used to talk to minifigs while he was building a new Lego set. In fact, it was kind of endearing.

“Hold on, baby,” Finn whispered as he reached over to Sami. “Let me fix your mask.”

“Oh! Thanks.”

Sami held still as Finn reached over and fixed the mask for his costume. It was Halloween now, so Charlotte was holding her annual Halloween party. This year, she managed to get it in conjunction with Tyler, so they somehow managed to get invited at what Sami assumed was Xavier’s behest. It had been the first time in three years they had been invited to any of Charlotte’s parties, so Sami was a little on edge about what kind of drama could go down. Luckily, Finn was there to keep him level and suggest snappy Crazy 88 costumes.

“God, you should have warned me how good you look in a suit,” Finn muttered with a grin as he finished adjusting Sami’s mask.

“Says you,” Sami retorted, playing offended. “Mister former male model who looks like he was born to wear a suit.”

“I don’t know,” Finn said playfully, pushing back Sami’s coat slightly and splaying his fingers under one of his suspender straps. “I can’t pull off suspenders.”

Sami bit his lip as Finn gently ran his hand over his clothed chest. A million dirty thoughts ran through his head and it would just be so easy to blow off this party. “Oh god, I don’t want to mess up my suit.”

“That’s what you’re worried about,” Finn giggled as he kissed at the part of Sami’s neck above his collar.

“Y-yes,” Sami stammered, feeling himself blush. “I don’t know a damn thing about dry cleaning to start.”

Finn just laughed more, nipping slightly at Sami’s neck before backing off. “Okay, okay. But maybe you let me tear that suit off of you later tonight?”

“We’ll see where the night goes, love,” Sami cooed before leaning over to gently kiss Finn on the lips.

“Say that again,” Finn whispered, resting his forehead against Sami’s. 

“Love,” Sami responded, not even having to ask now. It was something of a game. One that Sami was happy to play along with.

“Yeah, that’s good,” Finn mumbled, his voice rumbling with happiness. He kissed Sami again. “I love you, too.”

A comfortable silence grew between the two as they stood in front of the closet, holding each other. Sami could lose himself in these kind of moments, but they had places to be tonight. “Should we get going before we distract ourselves further?”

“I guess so,” Finn sighed as he pulled away from Sami. “But if this party sucks, I suggest we bail.”

“Way ahead of you, Finn dear.”

\---

“Hi losers,” Charlotte said as soon as the two walked into the party.

“Good to see you too, Char,” Sami responded as he handed Tyler’s maid Aimée his winter coat. “What’s your costume this year? Queen Elizabeth?”

Charlotte faked a laugh as she gestured down to her yellow and black striped dress. “Queen Bee, but close enough, I guess. Still more relevant and timeless than your stupid costume.”

“Hey, the Crazy 88 are timeless,” Finn retorted as he draped himself over Sami and kissed him on the cheek.

“Well, I guess it’s more up-to-date than Bay-”

“SAMI,” Bayley shouted as she bounded over to him and jumped into his arms. “Oh, I have missed you.”

“You literally saw me a couple of weeks ago for Thanksgiving, Bay,” Sami said as he hugged her.

“Too long!”

Sami chuckled as he set Bayley down and got a better look at her. Flaming red wig and bright makeup matched with very 80s-ish clothes. “Okay, I’m lost. You didn’t tell me what you were dressing as.”

“Well, since me and Sasha are celebrating our third anniversary, we decided to dress as _Jem_ characters again. I’m Kimber and she’s…”

“Stormer,” Sasha concluded as she came up behind Bayley in a blue wig and even more outrageous makeup. “They’re a couple in the comics, so we thought it was perfect.”

“Wait, there are _Jem_ comics,” Finn asked.

Before Bayley or Sasha could answer, Charlotte groaned loudly. “Oh, could you four get out of my sight _please_? I don’t care about you or your stupid costumes.”

“Hey, that’s no way to treat your party guests,” Sasha snapped. “God, Charlotte, you just couldn’t let it go because me and Bayley started da-”

“The only reason you’re here,” Charlotte interrupted, “is because Xavier asked me and Tyler to invite you. Which you might just say goodbye to that privilege after tonight.”

Sami turned and looked at Charlotte, confused look on his face. “What? Why?”

Charlotte looked confused for a second before letting out a laugh. “Oh? You haven’t heard?”

“Obviously not if _I_ don’t know what’s happening,” Bayley responded.

“Well, you didn’t hear it from me, but a little bee told me that Xavier and Tyler are breaking up…”

Before the last word was out of Charlotte’s mouth, the four of them responded in time with a loud and surprised “WHAT?!”

\---

“God, poor Xavier,” Sami muttered as Finn handed him a soda and sat in his lap on one of the couches.

“What do you think happened,” Bayley asked as she took a sip of her drink.

“Who cares,” Dean responded from the floor, moving his facemask up from his Jason costume as he popped a small pastry into his mouth from his plate. “Tyler’s a dick and let’s just take one of the last times we’ll probably be at one of his Toronto parties with grace and dignity. And by that, I mean let’s steal as much food as we can by the end of the night.”

“Man,” Roman sighed, resting his back against the edge of the sofa, and looking up through his Dread Pirate Roberts mask. “I really hoped they would work out. For Tyler’s sake.”

Sami watched Dean’s face twist in disapproval, which made him nervously look up at Finn. “Hey Man of Many Exes, do you have any theories to add to this?”

Finn just sighed and shrugged. “I don’t know. Knowing Tyler, it could be anything.”

“Well, if anyone wants to ask Xavier,” Sasha responded as she tossed some M&Ms in her mouth, “It looks like he just walked out.”

Sami looked up and over Finn to see Xavier walking along the second level, dressed as some comic book character in a furry vest and looking visibly distressed. Seeing him like that made Sami’s heart feel suddenly heavy. “I’m gonna go talk to him.”

“Want me to come with,” Finn asked, standing up.

“No, I think I’ll go it alone,” he responded, giving Finn a slight kiss on the lips. “I don’t want to seem like I’m bombarding him.”

Finn nodded as he took Sami’s place on the couch. “Okay, love. Let us know what you hear.”

“You got it!”

Sami then turned away and headed towards the stairs, bobbing and weaving his way through the party with a few polite excuse mes. Finally, he ascended the staircase and turned the corner to see Xavier looking down over the party. “Hey Xavier.”

Xavier looked up at him for a second, then back down. “Oh, hi Sami,” he said, his voice not with its usual enthusiasm. “I’m assuming Charlotte told you, huh?”

“Yeah. You doing alright,” Sami asked, leaning on the rail next to Xavier.

“I mean, I guess,” Xavier responded, scratching behind his ear. “Before anyone asks though, I broke up with him. Or I initiated it, I guess. That might be the more correct term for what happened.”

Sami practically did a double take at that. “I… what? Why?”

“I don’t know,” Xavier sighed. “It’s… complicated. Or not. I just… Have you ever loved someone, but knew they weren’t right for you?”

“Not until it was too late,” Sami admitted.

“Yeah, well, I guess that was me. Trying to keep it from becoming too late.”

A silence fell between the two as they watched the party mill about under them. Before Sami could ask anything else about Tyler and Xavier, a series of shouts came from the party downstairs as people surged towards the entrance, phones out. “What the hell,” Sami muttered.

“What’s going on down there,” Tyler asked, walking up behind them and looking over the rail in the space between them. Sami looked over to see him dressed in a sexy cop costume and Xavier looking away from him sadly. “I’m not down there, so why are people freaking out?”

“I don’t know,” Sami said, peering down at the crowds. Through the crowd, he could see two women posing with party goers. They looked very much alike, with one with short hair and another with long and a backwards baseball cap. “It looks like… twins? Over there?”

As Sami pointed, Tyler looked over and gasped. “The Bella Twins are at my party?! Oh my god, I am a terrible host!”

Tyler then ran off, leaving a perplexed Sami in his wake. “The who twins?”

“The Bella Twins,” Xavier responded. “They’re only the hottest pop duo in the world right now. Don’t you watch TV?”

“I haven’t had cable since I left Montreal, bro.”

“Fair enough,” he sighed, backing away from the railing. “I guess I’ll brave the party and go see what the ruckus is about.”

Sami nodded, following Xavier down the stairs back into the extra loudness of the party. Before he could even finish descending the staircase though, Finn ran over and grabbed him by the arm. “Sami, we have to go.”

“Why,” Sami asked, sounding confused. “The party hasn’t sucked that much. Plus, now there’s actual famous people here, though I don’t know who they are. At all. I bet Bayley does…”

“That’s actually why we need to leave,” Finn pleaded as Sami finished walking down the stairs. “This is not going to be good for either of us.”

“Why though? You haven’t really answ-”

“Sami Zayn,” a low, feminine voice said.

Sami looked up to see the Bella Twins standing across from him and some of the crowd surging in behind them. From here, Sami could get a better look at them. The one with the short hair was dressed very bohemian, with jeans, a long flowy purple top, and a matching headband in her hair. Her sister in the ball cap next to her sported leggings under a short skirt and a halter top in a similar purple to her sister’s. Sami wasn’t exactly sure what was happening or how they even knew who he was when he didn’t know them. “Uh, yeah. That’s me. Hi.”

As he walked closer to them, escaping Finn’s grip, the one in the ballcap smiled wickedly. “Get him, Brie,” she said, her voice pitched higher than the one who addressed him.

“What?”

Before Sami could have his question answered, the short haired one presumably named Brie quickly kicked Sami in the chest with the top of her foot. Sami felt the breath escape his body as he was knocked off his feet and slid across the floor, clearing a path in his wake. As he came to a stop, he groaned as Bayley and Sasha came running over to him. “Jesus Sami, what did you do,” Bayley shouted.

“Dating the worst man on Earth,” Brie responded as she stomped over to Sami.

“I wouldn’t say the _worst,_ Brie,” the other sister sneered, rolling her eyes. “But yeah, Finn Bálor is kind of terrible.”

Sami groaned as he leaned his head back against the floor. Around their necks, he spotted that all too familiar silver symbol that the previous four exes all bore. “Let me guess… Evil exes?”

“Five and six,” Brie responded, putting her arm around her sister. “Nikki and Brie Bella. Bet you didn’t see that one coming.”

“I mean, no, I didn’t, but I literally just found out who you are like five minutes ago.”

“Seriously,” Sasha asked. “You lived with Bayley for how long and The Bella Twins never came up?”

“It doesn’t matter how long he’s known about us,” Nikki responded as she stomped forward and picked Sami off the ground with one arm. “What he needs to know is we’re going to finish him!”

With a grunt, Nikki tossed Sami at full velocity towards the wall. As Sami slid down it, he struggled to catch his breath as the twins began to loom over him. “Becky warned me that you two would be tough.”

“Did she,” Nikki asked as she knelt down to look at Sami. “Well, did she tell you that your precious boyfriend is a cheater?”

Sami shook his head, feeling like he hallucinated that comment. “What?”

“Oh, you didn’t know,” Nikki purred as she grabbed Sami by his hair. He cringed at her nails scraping against his scalp. “Let me say it a little louder: Finn cheated on Brie with me.”

“And it was the most devastating moment of my life,” Brie drawled as she knelt next to Nikki. “It turned us against each other when we found out, but then we realized our sisterhood was more important than a stupid man. So we set out to destroy him, but we were asked to take a slight… _detour.”_

Brie then slapped Sami so hard he could hear his ears ringing as he fell limp on the floor. She laughed as she stood up over him. “Be happy I didn’t slap harder. Been told I can pop ear drums.”

“Let this be a warning,” Nikki said. “We’ll see you soon, Sami Zayn.”

As he struggled to get up, Sami watched as the twins sashayed away, their arms around each other's shoulders. The crowd closed up around them as they walked off, leaving Sami feeling like he dreamt that whole confrontation more than anything else.

“C’mon Sami,” Finn mumbled as he began helping him up. “We need to go.”

“What… Was that true?”

Finn fell silent as he draped Sami’s arm over his shoulder and waited for the crowd to die down some before trudging forward towards the door. For all the birds in Sami’s head right now, the sound of silence from Finn didn’t exactly make him feel better.

\---

“Finn, talk to me, please,” Sami pleaded as he followed Finn up the stairs to their apartment.

Leaving the party had been something of a blur. Sami wasn’t sure if it was how hard he had been knocked around by the Bellas or if Finn had been in that much of a rush as he retrieved their winter gear and his bag from Tyler’s maid, but he felt like he hadn’t really come to until they had hit Subspace, the cold air whipping at them as Finn gripped onto Sami’s hand with a kind of intensity that he had never felt before from him.

“We should have just stayed home,” Finn muttered, his voice cracking as he unlocked the door. “I didn’t… I had hoped that… God… FUCK.”

As he opened the door, he burst in, stomping without stopping to throw his bag or his coat down. Sami followed in behind him, closing the door and ripping his mask off. His chest was tensing up. Finn couldn’t have… could he? “Finn, please tell me they were lying.”

Finn stopped short of the bedroom, turning back towards Sami and rubbing his hands over his face. “I wish I could.”

Sami felt his heart stop in his chest. This couldn’t be happening. “What?”

Finn slowly took his mask off and sighed as he looked up at Sami. “What Nikki said was true. Shortly after I moved to America about… three years ago? I started working for Hunter and I started seeing Brie, who was signed to his record label. I always knew she had a twin, but for some reason when I met Nikki a few months later… I just… I couldn’t stop myself.”

Sami wasn’t sure if his ears were finally popping or if his brain was exploding. Either way, he was feeling his body heat up as he began to shake. “God Finn, how could you do that?!”

“Do you think I’m proud of that, Sami,” Finn spat, looking at him tearfully. “I have to live with that stupid thing I did every day and I can’t even explain why I did it.”

“You can’t… you can’t explain,” Sami sputtered. “God, even Kevin had an explanation for why he cheated on me.”

“Look, Sami, I know why you’re upset, but that was literally the only time I did something like that,” Finn explained. “I would never hurt you like that.”

“How can I even know that,” Sami exclaimed. “Shit, how do I even know you weren’t still seeing Hunter when you started seeing me?!”

As soon as the words fell out of Sami’s mouth, he instantly regretted them, but the steely stare from Finn made him feel only inches tall. “How dare you.”

“Finn… I’m sorry,” Sami whispered, curling in on himself. “I was…”

“I don’t want to fucking hear it tonight, Sami,” Finn said, his voice shaking and cold. “Sleep on the couch or at Bayley’s. I don’t care.”

As he turned towards his room, Sami followed after him, pleading. Finn just slammed the bedroom door in his face, not even turning to look at him. As he could hear the faint sound of Finn sniffling, Sami slid down the opposite wall and curled his knees into his chest. Somehow, that hurt even more than anything Brie or Nikki did to him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, there are _Jem and the Holograms_ comics. They're pretty rad. You should read them.
> 
> Again, I'm sorry.


	13. Early Winter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After his hurtful words, Sami tries to fix his mistake. Unfortunately, it's not easy when you have a gig you forgot about.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Writing this chapter and the next one wasn't the hardest thing I've had to do with this story so far, but I was certainly dreading it even before the election. I'm sorry that I can't give you something more happy right now to distract you from your troubles. We're in the homestretch though. Stay patient and I hope I can make this story worth the time I've given it and love you guys have given me.

“You used to know the way,” the fairy said. “Didn’t you?”

“I thought I did,” Sami sighed, looking up at the trees as he sat on the snowy ground. It was cold, but he was used to it. “Maybe I never did to begin with…”

Suddenly a whooshing noise swept through the trees. Sami lept up, holding his shield and sword up with him. “Show your-”

Before the words could fall out of his mouth, he felt shadowy tendrils around his throat, pressing in with sharp nails. “Poor you,” the shadow whispered in a familiar voice before going in for the squeeze.

\---

Sami woke with a start, gasping for air as he tried to rip away at whatever was at his neck.

Except there was nothing there. He wasn’t even in a forest either. He was back in his place. Finn’s place. Their place? He caught his breath and laid back down, staring up at the ceiling as the rosy reach of dawn began to creep in.

Sami tried his best to sleep on the couch that night, but his dreams would get the better of him. Becky wailing like a banshee over Nikki and Brie as the other exes loomed around. Kevin and Antonio turning into monsters, ripping away at him with sharp teeth. That ever present dark figure, creeping around him and stabbing him through his heart and throat. Every time Sami got close to sleep, another dream would pop up and wake him with a start.

He wanted desperately to crawl into bed with Finn. To whisper apologies and for it all to be okay again, but Sami knew it wasn’t going to be easy. Especially when he was the cause of those short and bursting sobs that he heard down the hall a few times. Somehow, those were worse than the dreams.

As the sun began to rise over Cabbagetown, Sami sighed and sat up on the couch. Being here wasn’t going to be productive, so he might as well go someplace he could talk it out.

\---

“You said that,” Bayley asked incredulously.

“Yep.”

“Goddamn Sami, you actually said that?”

“Yep.”

Bayley sighed as she leaned back in one of the lawn chairs her and Sasha had set up outside. They didn’t have enough money to rent somewhere with a porch and a yard, but they made do with their little patch of grass and chairs out next to it. Sami had to admit that it was a relaxing set up, even in the freezing newly November morning as he was being judged by his best friend.

“Sami, how many times have I told you that Finn is the best thing to ever happen to you?”

“A lot,” Sami replied as he picked up his coffee cup from the ground next to him and took a shameful sip.

“So WHY,” Bayley asked, turning over to look Sami right in the eye, “are you coming to me just after sunrise because you said something stupid in response to a very honest confession of past infidelity. Which he admits he is ashamed of?”

“Because I’m an idiot,” Sami said, sighing and pulling his tuque down over his eyes.

“No, you’re not an idiot, Sami. You just… And you know what I’m about to say is out of love, right?”

“That usually means you’re about to get real honest, but go on.”

“You have a tendency to go for what hurts the most when you’re upset,” Bayley admitted. “You remember when Charlotte and I had our falling out around the time she was dating Seth and you yelled at me about how my drama was affecting your life?”

Sami cringed as he lifted his tuque, remembering that whole ordeal. He couldn’t exactly remember what started the fight between Bayley and Charlotte, except that it involved the fact that Charlotte had feelings for Sasha when she started dating Bayley. Charlotte would then take that out on Seth and the rest of the band. Especially Sami. It was a rough few months for everyone involved. “Yeah, I’m not proud of that.”

“I know you’re not,” Bayley said, reaching over to grab his hand. “But the point is that you’ve been like a wounded animal since you moved here. And like, you’ve healed up in some ways, but the second you think someone close to you is going to hurt you, you lash out and hurt them worse.”

Sami looked away from Bayley and sunk down into the chair. “I just… I guess I assumed then that he’d cheat on me too.”

“Did any of his other exes call him a cheater though?”

“No.”

“Did he admit to cheating on anyone else?”

“No.”

“And to confirm one more time… did he admit that he’s not proud of that moment of his life?”

“...Yeah.”

Bayley sighed again as she held onto his hand. “Sami, what he did in the past was wrong, but he knows it and hates himself enough for it. He doesn’t need your help in that department.”

Sami sunk down the lowest he could into his chair, groaning and slowly tapping the back of his head against the plastic with a low _thunk._ “Fuck me.”

“I know, buddy,” Bayley said, patting him on the hand again. “I know.”

\---

Finn was like a beacon. Glowing bright in the darkness. Looking at peace as he sat in the doorway of some building Sami had never seen before.

“Finn?”

He reached out for Finn, whose eyes immediately snapped open. Immediately, his face fell and began twist, turning into something otherworldly and demonic as a dark energy swirled around him.

With a gasp, Sami turned and began to run, but a tendril of sorts snapped around his wrist and dragged him back as he screamed.

\---

Sami’s eyes snapped open as he felt the sun beat down on him from the window above Bayley’s couch. He had lost track of just how many nightmares he had in the past 12 hours, but at least he actually managed to get a nap in.

“Mornin’, sleepyhead.”

Sami looked up to see Carmella in the kitchen, pouring coffee into a travel mug and all bundled up. “Hey Carm. That cold outside?”

“Look, I ain’t used to how cold you Canadians actually consider cold,” she said as she went to the fridge to grab milk. “But yeah, it’s kind of chilly right now. And sorry if I woke you up. I had to come over to grab something, but Bayley warned me you would be here after… uh…”

“She told you about it, huh?”

Carmella paused as she opened the gallon, blushing a little. “Yeah, she did… Sorry.”

“It’s fine,” Sami said, giving her a slight smile. “I figure talking to Bayley always means at least one significant other knows the minutiae of my fuck ups. And don’t worry about waking me up. It was bad dreams that did that.”

Carmella nodded solemnly as Sami heard his phone buzz. He looked over at it, his heart stopping slightly. Was it Finn? 

He reached over and grabbed the phone, seeing the picture of Seth as Oscar the Grouch on the screen. Sami sighed of both disappointment and relief as he touched the green icon on the phone and put it to his ear. “Hi Seth Rollins.”

“Sami, where are you,” Seth asked. “You said you’d be here by now.”

“What are you talking about?”

“We have a gig tonight and we needed to practice beforehand,” Seth groaned. “God, did Nikki Bella knock your brain loose?”

Sami cringed both at Seth’s comment and at his recollection of this fact. “God, Seth, I totally forgot. I’m so sorry.”

“Well, can you just get here? Please?”

“I mean, I gotta go grab my bass first. I’m at Bayley’s right now. I… I had a night.”

“Whatever. Just get here.”

Before Sami could say anything else, Seth hung up and the phone beeped in Sami’s ear. Sami groaned as he fell back over onto the couch.

“That bad, huh,” Carmella asked, looking over her travel mug.

“You don’t even know.”

\---

Sami felt strange walking into the apartment while Finn was at work.

He had done it before. Several times since they moved in together in fact. However, today it felt like a grim air hung around the room. Sami bit his lip as he closed the door behind him, wishing he had some way to rewind and take back what he had said.

Instead, he was going to have to settle for a fast shower, brushed teeth and a fresh set of clothes before Seth could call and complain about him being even later.

Still, Sami couldn’t help but linger a bit too long under the hot water. Stare at his reflection a bit too much as he brushed his teeth. Rummage around extra for the shirt he really wanted to wear. Being here was rough, but he didn’t want to leave either.

As he finished lacing up his shoes and grabbed walked to the living room to grab his bass, he heard the sound of jingling keys behind the door. Sami froze as the door opened, not really sure if he should hide or just keep doing what he was doing. So he just stood, his heart beating 500 miles a minute as Finn walked through the door, pulling his bandana down from his nose. “Um… hi…”

Finn looked up at Sami, his eyes still looking a bit red. Sami cringed internally, feeling even worse than before. Finn seemed to freeze as well, his eyes turning away from Sami. “Hi.”

An uncomfortable silence grew between the two as Sami rubbed at his arm, looking away from Finn. He wondered what he could even say to make this better. If he could at all. Slowly, he took a breath. “I… have a gig tonight. If you want to come.”

“I’d rather not, if I’m being honest,” Finn sighed, looking back at Sami.

“No, that’s fine,” Sami said, scratching at the back of his head. “I don’t blame you. It’s loud, Seth Rollins is an asshole, I’m there…”

“Sami…”

“Sorry, being self-deprecating,” Sami admitted, looking back at Finn. He then reached out and put his hands on Finn’s shoulders. “Look, I don’t have a lot of time and I already have a million texts from Seth about running late, but I want you to know that I know I screwed up and that I’m sorry and that I want to talk it out later tonight or tomorrow.”

Finn looked up at him, his eyes looking skeptical. “Promise?”

“Of course,” Sami said, smiling slightly. “I love you, okay?”

A small smile twitched at the corners of Finn’s mouth. “Say it again?”

“I love you,” Sami whispered softly. He then leaned in and kissed Finn on the forehead. “And I’m sorry. A million times.”

“Go,” Finn said, gesturing his head towards the door. “I’ll see you later tonight.”

Sami smiled a little, kissing Finn again before breaking off and grabbing his bass. He looked back at Finn again, but Finn was scrambling to grab his phone, which was buzzing in the pocket of his jacket. As he took the call, Sami slipped out the door, silently closing it behind him.

Baby steps.

\---

“So do we even know who we’re playing against yet,” Roman asked as they began unloading his car in front of The Ninth Circle.

“Fuck if I know,” Dean muttered as he hefted his drums onto the curb. “I figured they would have told Seth.”

“They haven’t told me shit,” Seth admitted as he lifted his sunglasses. “Of course, I don’t know if that makes me feel better or worse than having practiced without a bassist.”

Seth shot a glare to Sami, who just glared back at him. “I told you, Seth. I had a night.”

“Yeah, you got beat up by The Bella Twins. I heard.”

“Well, I wouldn’t say ‘beat up,’” a low voice said beside them. Sami practically jumped out of his skin as soon as he heard it. He didn’t have to turn like the rest of the band did to see that Brie Bella was walking up.

“More like creamed,” Nikki said, walking up beside her. Sami finally turned to see them standing across from the band, looking very smug. “Which we plan on doing again tonight.”

“Wait, what,” Sami asked.

“Oh, they really didn’t tell you, huh,” Nikki asked, pouting with fake concern. “It was going to be Miss Charlotte Flair and her boys…”

“Dammit,” Seth muttered under his breath.

“Hey! Cute one,” Nikki snapped, gesturing a well manicured finger at Seth. “Don’t interrupt me.”

Seth looked surprised at first, but immediately switched to smug flirt mode. “Well, I do consider myself pretty ha-”

Nikki just rolled her eyes as she placed a hand over Seth’s face. “Whatever, Hush Baby. We’re here to crush your dreams tonight. And all in front of Triple H too.”

“Wait, _he’s_ here,” Seth asked, suddenly seeming more nervous.

“Oh yes, at our request,” Nikki cooed, a satisfied smile on her face. “Told him that The Shield was a talented band, but we’re looking to say otherwise.”

“We pulled some strings,” Brie admitted, looking straight at Sami. “You’ll have to face us head on tonight. In more ways than one.”

“Good luck, boys,” Nikki said with a waggle of her fingers. “You’ll need it.”

As the twins walked away, Sami felt three sets of eyes on him. He was about ready to sink into the ground. “Well… that went well.”

“What the fuck just happened, Zayn,” Dean asked, his voice slow and confused.

“And why is our entire career suddenly at stake,” Seth screeched.

“I don’t know,” Sami sighed, scratching at his beard. “What do they even mean by more ways than one? It’s not like there’s two stages in there or anything.”

\---

“Okay, so I was wrong about that.”

“Sami Zayn, I’m gonna strangle you.”

“I know Dean, I know.”

The four of them stood on a makeshift stage placed in the back of the giant room that was The Ninth Circle. Across the sea of people was the main stage, set up for a backing band for two pop singers with their own wireless mics. Sami gripped at his bass with anticipation. “I’m sorry you guys got dragged into this. That was never the intention.”

“Yeah, well, maybe you should have thought about that before dating a mysterious stranger from your dreams,” Seth said, shooting a look at him.

“Yeah, well, maybe you should have kept it in your pants when we told you dating Charlotte was a bad idea,” Sami shot back. He then cringed at himself, remembering his conversation with Bayley that morning. “Sorry… Didn’t mean that.”

“He deserves it anyway,” Dean shouted from the back.

“Oh god, he’s here,” Seth hissed through gritted teeth. 

Sami looked over in the direction he was pointing to see a tall, muscular man with a buzzcut and an ill-fitting suit wearing glasses. He looked like he didn’t belong here, but that’s not why his general vibe set Sami off. “Who?”

“Triple H, you nimrod,” Seth spat. “Only the biggest tastemaker in America.”

“He looks like an angry dad…”

Suddenly, the lights began to dip and the crowd went crazy. Roman cast a look over at Sami through the darkness. “What’s the game plan, buddy?”

A bright spotlight shone in Sami’s face as the sound of feedback crackled in his ears. Sami looked out over the sea of bodies to see Brie and Nikki in semi matching red costumes, with Brie in pants that looked slashed and torn and Nikki in short shorts and a baseball cap from the night before. Sami’s neck started hurting again just looking at them.

“Good evening, Toronto,” Nikki said with a bright smile. The crowd roared positively in response. “Who’s ready to kill it tonight?”

The crowd cheered again and Nikki cast her eyes over the sea of people right at Sami. He tightened his grip around the bridge of his bass as he stomped on one of his pedals. “We fight like it’s our last show.”

“WE ARE THE SHIELD,” Dean shouted over the crowd, “AND WE’RE HERE TO MAKE YOU FORGET ABOUT YOUR STUPID RELATIONSHIP PROBLEMS.”

Sami then began aggressively strumming the bass as Seth jumped into the beginning of ‘Threshold.’ Sami felt like an energy was surging through them as he and Dean kept the backbeat going. It even felt like the crowd was starting to turn towards them.

“You ready, Brie,” Nikki crooned over the speakers.

“Ready, Nikki!”

Suddenly, a techno-ish beat dropped over the speakers and Nikki and Brie turned with their backs against each other. _“You can look, but you can’t touch,”_ they sang in unison as their arms turned into a flurry of in-sync movements. Suddenly, a ball of energy began forming around them, slowly turning itself into a twin set of dragons. As the dragons formed over the screaming crowd, Sami slowed his playing to look up in awe. From the sounds of it, he wasn’t the only one. 

With a wicked grin, the twins pointed forward and the dragons lurched. Sami ducked down, bracing for impact. The dragons roared, causing a gust of air that knocked him over onto the ground. He squeezed his eyes shut as he listened to the band scream and their instruments clatter across the stage. As one of Dean’s cymbals fell and crashed across his shoulder, Sami groaned. He then turned over and looked at the rest of the band. “You guys alright?”

“Yeah,” Roman grunted as he sat back up, rubbing at his head. “Haven’t gotten hit like that since Edmonton.”

“What the hell was that,” Seth asked, scrambling to a sitting position.

“Energy projection,” Sami sighed as the dragons swirled around the ceiling as the Twins continued performing. “Really strong too. Like those two can kill you without even touching you strong.”

“Seriously,” Seth shouted. “God, we should just give up now. Game over. Sami’s gonna die and my band goes down in history as the most laughable band in Toronto in front of Hunter Hearst Helmsley. Fuck everything, man.”

A shock went down Sami’s spine as he heard Seth say that. “What?! He’s here?”

“Yeah, I fucking told you that. You called him an angry dad.”

Sami froze as he looked back over the crowd to the man Seth referred to as Triple H. While everyone else in the crowd was focused on The Bellas, Sami could see him looking back at them. His blood began to boil. “You’re telling me that the man you’re trying to impress is my boyfriend’s bad ex and _the guy who has wanted me for the better part of this year?!”_

“WHAT? Seriously?!”

Sami looked up at the stage as Brie and Nikki continued their performance. It would be easy to give up with the Bellas stacking the odds against them and Hunter staring him down, but Sami had to remember that he didn’t even want to be here in the first place. He wanted to be at home with Finn, making amends, if he even could.

He promised Finn they would talk. He promised he would come home.

And Sami was not gonna die on a fake stage in the Ninth Circle while Hunter watched, that was for certain.

“No,” Sami shouted as he got back to his feet. “We can’t give up now. We’ve been at this for years. We have it in us to push back against them. Plus, it’s four on two! We can win this! Who’s with me?!”

Seth, Roman and Dean all looked at Sami skeptically for a second before looking at each other and nodding. “We’re in,” Roman confirmed.

Quickly, the four of them reconfigured their set up and cranked their sound up even louder as they picked up the song where they left off. _“Reaching my threshold,”_ Seth and Roman sang in unison as Sami dug into the groove of Dean’s kick drum. Suddenly, a spark of electricity ran through them and outwards towards the crowd, forming itself into a giant doberman. It’s bark roared through the room and the crowd went nuts.

The Twins glared. With a point of their fingers and a chorus of _“Take your best shot, baby,”_ the dragons surged from their resting place towards the doberman. With fangs bared, the doberman lurched forward and snapped at the dragons. As they swirled around him in time to The Bellas movements, Sami could feel the energy baring down on him, but he pressed forward.

Now was not the time. Now was not the end.

The doberman leapt forward, grabbing at one dragons. With a thrash, the second one began to dissolve as the one in his mouth roared out in pain. Sami briefly saw the Bellas break formation, looking terrified. As he hit the final notes of the song, he watched as the doberman threw the dragon down onto the stage. He closed his eyes as the familiar flash of the exes disappearing shone through the hall. As he reopened them, he saw the way the stage began to fall apart and crash down on itself. It didn’t seem to matter to the crowd though. They ate it up with thunderous applause as the doberman howled and slowly dissolved.

“Well,” Seth said, pushing back at his hair, which seemed fluffier than usual due to the electric energy. “That went well.”

Sami scanned the crowd for a second, looking for Hunter. Instead, all there was were chatty and excited hipsters where he was standing before. “Yeah, I guess so.”

Suddenly, Sami heard a small and bubbly dinging noise next to him. He began to check his pockets and his rig for his phone, but Dean stopped him. “Uh… Sami buddy,” he said, looking above Sami’s head with wide eyes. “You got a… thing? It’s right above you.”

Sami looked up to see what looked like a pixelated version of his own head floating above him. “Oh.”

“Did you seriously fight enough bosses that you got an extra life,” Roman asked, looking slightly incredulous.

Sami looked up at it and shrugged. “Only one way to find out.”

With that, he reached up and tapped it, listening to a happy bubbly noise as it flashed away into thin air.

\---

“You know, all things considered, I think this gig went pretty well.”

“Keep up the optimism, Zayn,” Roman chuckled as he tetris'd their instruments around in the back of his car.

“I’m with Sami on this one,” Dean said as he wrapped his arm around Sami’s shoulder. “We got enough money from the door that we’re not eating Pizza Pizza tonight, baby!”

“Where would we even want to go,” Seth asked as he handed drums over to Roman. “I’m so used to going low for post-gig meals.”

“I might have a few suggestions,” a low and rumbly voice said behind them.

Sami felt himself freeze as he slowly turned. Right there in front of him was the angry looking dad. Triple H. Hunter Hearst Helmsley. _Hunter._ Sami moved to stand in front of Seth to protect him, but Seth just barged forward in total fanboy mode. “Oh my god… you’re him. You’re Triple H! Or Mr. Helmsley.”

“Please,” Hunter said, holding out a hand to Seth. “Call me Hunter. I feel like one of your members already does.”

He cast eyes to Sami with a smug grin as Seth shook his hand. Sami just glared. “So we finally meet, huh?”

“Relax, Sami, I’m not looking for a fight tonight,” Hunter said, pulling his hand away from Seth as he used his most soothing voice. Sami wasn’t buying it. “In fact, I was actually really impressed by you guys. You know, music today really lacks the raw passion that you guys bring to the table.”

“I mean, I just say that we suck, but okay,” Dean said with a shrug. Seth looked over and shushed him, but Dean just rolled his eyes.

“Well, I think with just the minimal amount of polishing, you guys could be huge,” Hunter said with a smile. He then reached into his pocket and pulled out a folded packet of paper and a pin. “So what do you say if we make it official?”

Seth gasped, but Sami scoffed. “What? No! We didn’t get into this for the money. Plus, you have been trying to kill me for the better part of a year because _I’m dating your ex.”_

“Water under the bridge,” Hunter stated. 

“I don’t believe you.”

That statement didn’t seem to stop Seth from grabbing the contract out of Hunter’s hands and scrambling to sign. “You don’t speak for me, Sami!”

“What?! Seriously?”

“Look, man, I know about the exes and your DIY ethos when it comes to this band, but this is my baby, and what I say, goes,” Seth stated flatly as he found the last page and began to sign. “And I say we’re taking this rocket to the moon, baby!”

“What you says, goes,” Dean asked, his voice skeptical. “When did we ever agree that?”

“The moment we formed this band? God Dean, get it together.”

As Seth laughed, Sami huffed and walked over to the back of Roman’s car. Without another word, he grabbed his bass and yanked it out of the hatchback. “Well then, you can leave to the moon without me. I quit.”

“Aw what,” Seth asked. “Are you serious, Sami?”

“Forget about it, Seth Rollins,” Hunter assured. “We can always find you another bassist. That is, if the rest of the band is on board.”

Sami looked at Roman and Dean with a pleading look. Roman’s face hardened as he looked back at Hunter. “No. I’m out too. I’m done with Seth’s bullshit.”

“Me too,” Dean said, rounding around to the back of the car and reaching to pull out Seth’s guitar and pedalboard. “We went into this as friends, but if you’re _really_ acting like this is your pet project, then let it be.”

Seth fumed as Dean threw his gear onto the ground before him. He pointed a finger at Dean wand was about ready to yell when Hunter put a hand on his shoulder. “It’s alright, Seth,” he said, his voice a bit too even and calm for Sami’s liking. “I think we can still work this out to our liking. Let’s chat. I know an excellent sushi place that’s still open.”

As he wrapped a large arm around Seth, a black car pulled up behind them. Hunter snapped his fingers and the driver jumped out. Hunter pointed over to the gear on the ground and the driver ran over to pick them up and put them in the car. Hunter then looked back over at the now broken Shield. “You boys are making a huge mistake.”

“Get fucked, four eyes,” Dean hissed.

“So be it,” Hunter sighed as he walked Seth over to the car. He then paused and looked back at Sami. “Oh, one more thing Sami? Tell Finn I said hi.”

A smug grin grew on his face as he stepped in the car with Seth and the driver closed the door. A cold feeling spread throughout Sami. Something akin to nausea and fear. As he watched the car drive off, he felt a pit growing in his stomach as he dropped his bass. “I have to go.”

“Sami, wait,” Dean shouted, but Sami was already gone, taking off running towards home as the cold air struggled through his lungs and the feeling of the first snow of the season began stinging at his face.

\---

“FINN!”

Sami burst into the apartment, stumbling up the stairs as he reached into his pocket for his keys. His hands shook as he reached out to unlock the door, fumbling several turns before he finally managed it and pushed the door open. “FINN! Please, we need to talk. Hunter showed up tonight.”

He stumbled forward, rushing forward to the bedroom when he saw Finn wasn’t in the living room or kitchen. The door to the bedroom had been closed, causing Sami to burst in and fall over onto his knees, trying to catch his breath. “Finn?”

Sami looked up to see Finn standing by the nightstand, holding a note in his hands and looking like he was getting ready to go out for work. Leather jacket, goggles, bandana and messenger bag over his shoulder. He looked like he did when they first met in Sami’s head. He looked over at Sami, smiling weakly with tears in his eyes. “This was great, Sami,” he said, choking up.

“Finn, what are you talking about,” Sami gasped between breaths.

“I’m sorry, _mo ghrá,”_ Finn whispered, his voice straining. “I really did try. Please remember that.”

“Finn, wait, pl-”

Before Sami could say anything else, a light seemed to grow around Finn. Sami covered his eyes as a blinding flash surrounded the room for a few seconds before dying back down slowly. Sami uncovered his eyes to see that the room was now empty. Everything of Finn’s was still there, but he wasn’t. Sami’s heart picked up as he crawled forward into the room, feeling the place on the floor that Finn was just standing in. He prayed this was a trick. That this was all a nightmare. Sami then looked up at the ceiling, his eyes stinging as he hoped for an answer instead of a deafening silence that was beginning to permeate.

“Finn… Finn… _Habibi?”_


	14. Interlude: Happy New Year, Baby

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A short interlude for a phone call on New Year's Eve.

_Happy New Years! Wish you had come to Xavier’s w/ us. Still love you tho._

Sami smiled weakly as he looked at Bayley’s text. Just past midnight and instead of being out to celebrate the coming of a new year, he was home, freezing his ass off in a lawn chair. 

Being around people had been the hardest thing in the past two months. He wasn’t ready for questions. He wasn’t sure if he _could_ be.

He sighed as he looked at his phone, his thumb hovering over Finn’s contact information. He listened to the sounds of fireworks echoing and popping over the neighborhood as he leaned back in the lawn chair. It was cold, but it was better than being inside alone.

Six years since things ended with Kevin. Six years since Sami ran away to a whole new province just to avoid him.

He hoped that this year would make it hurt less, but other wounds were still fresh. If he was ever tempted to drink, now was the night.

Sami pressed Finn’s number, dialing it up and feeling his heart slow as the screen turned. However, there was no ring and Sami was immediately met with a voice he hadn’t heard in two months. “Hi, you’ve reached Finn Bálor,” the recording said, Finn’s consonants sounding harsh. “I can’t get to the phone right now, so leave your message and I’ll get back to you as soon as I can. Beeeeep.”

There was then a slight giggle from Finn before the robo voice came in and told Sami to leave a message at the tone. He couldn’t help but smile a little bit as he imagined Finn smiling as he recorded that.

He missed him so much.

The voicemail beeped and Sami took a deep breath. “Hey, Finn. I… I don’t even know if you’re hearing this at all. But it’s past midnight in Toronto. Happy New Year!”

Sami laughed weakly before he continued. “I wish you were here right now, I guess. Instead I’m just thinking about you and leaving Kevin six years ago. Also being a sad Canadian and listening to Leonard Cohen while freezing my ass off. God, I don’t even like Leonard Cohen that much, but he’s Québécois like me.”

He curled up a little on himself, looking up at the sky. “So… ummm… If you ever come back, I just need you to know that I’m living with Bayley again. Don’t worry, we saved your stuff. I have boxes with your clothes and toys and stuff and Enzo, Cass and Carmella have your furniture in their basement. It’s safe. Roman even helped me take it apart and get it down the stairs and everything. I just… things have been rough since you left, between the band breaking up and…”

Sami paused, images of his depressed self getting sacked from his job playing in his head. Did he dare admit that over the phone though? “Well, I just couldn’t keep the apartment anymore. At least not by myself. Guess I really am as much as a loser as all your exes thought I was. As Kevin said I was.”

He sniffed. Why was he even doing this to himself? It’s not like Finn cared. His phone didn’t even ring.

Still, Sami bit back the tears.

“Look, Finn. I’m sorry for what I did. And this isn’t even me asking you to come back to me or come back home. Just… tell me where you went. I worry about you. I just hope you’re okay.”

Sami shuddered, holding back the latest flow of tears for just a few more seconds. “Well, that’s all I got. I won’t bother you again like this. Happy New Year, baby. Be safe. I love you.”

With that, Sami closed out the call and finally curled his knees up to his face, letting out a racking sob as the tears stung warm against his cold skin.


	15. Haunting, Haunted, Haunts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's been three months since Finn left, and Sami has to deal with ghosts from his past before he can feel at home again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The beginning of the end, kids! I'm going to take a slight writing break next week since my mom is in town for American Thanksgiving, but I'm on track to finish the story by the end of the year!

The desert was not still.

Instead, a strong gust of wind whipped through the plateau, getting sand in Sami’s eyes and obstructing his view as he tried to trudge forward. He had no idea where he even was right now.

Ahead of him, he could make out the shape of a figure. A man in black. A bit smaller than him from the looks of it. With broad shoulders and goggles around his head. “Finn?!”

Sami reached out ahead of him, pushing forward as fast as he could. As he got closer, he was able to make out more of his edges. His messenger bag, his jacket, the particular way he tied the knot in his bandanas. “Finn!”

As he reached out to touch his shoulder, the figure suddenly dissolved, turning into smoke that got blown away with the wind. Sami watched as it did, feeling his heart drop in his chest.

“Sami…”

A chill ran down Sami’s spine as he heard the low voice behind him. _Hunter._ Was he here? Was he in Sami’s dreams for real? Was this all a terrible nightmare?

A large and heavy hand placed itself on Sami’s shoulder. Hunter leaned in close to Sami’s ear. In his periphery, Sami could make out the glint of glasses and a terrible grin. “I’m waiting for you.”

\---

Sami woke with a start, holding back a scream as he did. As he caught his breath, he looked around the room.

He was in Bayley and Sasha’s spare room, sleeping on the old mattress he used to share with Bayley. He was surrounded by boxes full of Finn’s things, and it was so cold and grey outside that it was starting to permeate into the room. It was early February 2nd. Groundhog Day and three months since Finn left. If he had woken up to the sounds of Sonny and Cher, he would have known he was still trapped in a nightmare.

Sami sighed as he felt his heart slow down. He reached over for his phone, which was sitting on top of a letter Finn had left behind for him. _“I’m sorry, but Hunter got to me. I love you the most,”_ it had said in Sharpie. Sami had a tendency to look at it when he was particularly low, especially after his voicemail to Finn went unanswered. Sasha told him he should just throw it out and move on with his life.

Maybe he could, but he was still going to wake up depressed every morning.

Sami grunted as he sat up, looking through his phone. Texts from Dean about hanging out tomorrow. No returned voicemails. No new emails, which was only mildly upsetting considering the email he had sent two nights before. Still, a bit more activity than usual, but it was worth a follow up.

_Hey Nattie, just making sure you got my email from the other day. Send my love to Tyson._

_-Sami_

He pressed send and sighed as he rolled off the mattress into a standing position. He probably needed a shower since he couldn’t remember if it had been three or four days since his last one. Whenever he threw on the pair of pajamas he was wearing currently, but that didn’t answer many questions as to when that was.

Slowly, he stumbled out of the door of the room and spilled into the living room where Bayley and Sasha were having their morning coffee before work. “Hey Sami,” Bayley said quietly with a reassuring smile. “You’re up early.”

“Crappy dreams,” Sami mumbled as he rubbed at his face.

“More than usual,” Sasha asked, a slight edge to her voice. Bayley shot her a look, which caused her to recoil a bit. “Sorry.”

“I mean, about the same,” Sami responded.

“Any plans for today,” Bayley asked, putting her mug down. “We can watch _Groundhog Day_ together when I get back from work.”

“That sounds cool. I mean, I don’t really have plans until I see Dean tomorrow anyway.”

“Oh good! Getting out of the house. I like hearing that.”

Sami just shrugged, leaving a bit of silence as Bayley awkwardly looked down and took a sip from her coffee. Sasha cleared her throat as she adjusted her glasses. “Have you heard from your friend yet? Natalie?”

“Natalya. Or Nattie,” Sami corrected, scratching at his head. “And no, I haven’t.”

“I mean, that’s not necessarily bad,” Bayley interjected. “Just that you get to stay…”

“Sure,” Sami muttered as he walked off to the bathroom, not adding more to the conversation. 

As he closed the door behind him, he heard Sasha sigh. “Nice going, Bayley.”

“I just don’t want him to run off to another province. It isn’t good for him.”

“This could be! He needs to get his mind off of Finn, love. Being here isn’t helping him.”

“Yeah, but I wonder how much of it is clearing his mind and how much of it is running away. It’s not like _Hunter_ has gone away...”

Sami sighed as he turned on the water, drowning out their conversation as he waited for it to heat up. Maybe he should have stayed in bed. A nightmare or a time loop was a much better option than this one.

\---

_Hey Sami! I totally did see you email, but I forgot to reply to it! Classic Nattie, right?_

_Anyway, yes, we would totally love to have you for as long as you need! It’s super quiet out here and Uncle Bret will mostly leave you be. The cats are another story though! ;)_

_Tyson says hello! Hopefully we’ll both get to hug you soon. It’s been too long, mister._

_Kisses and Whiskers,_

_Nattie_

\---

Sami smiled a little as he looked over the email again for the millionth time. This wasn’t the ideal situation where he wanted to be reunited with his old campmates, but he was happy that someone was willing to put up with him still.

“What’re you smiling about, Zayn?”

Sami looked up from his phone to see Dean walking over to him, actually looking somewhat put together in the face of winter. “Nothin’ really, Ambrose. Just waiting on some dude for coffee,” Sami replied, reaching his arms out to hug Dean. “Good to see you, buddy.”

“Not as good as it is to see you,” Dean replied as he pulled out of the hug and began walking alongside Sami. “Jesus, you kind of disappeared for a bit there.”

“Yeah, well, having your boyfriend leave you will do that.”

“Heard from him at all, man?”

“Nope.”

Dean hissed apologetically before he placed a sympathetic hand on Sami’s shoulder. “Sorry buddy. I can’t even begin to imagine how much that sucks.”

“Yeah, especially whenever I leave the house, I see signs of him everywhere,” Sami sighed. He then groaned as they walked by a lamp post with a bright green logo advertising the opening of the DX Theater on Valentine’s Day. “Even worse when I see signs from his ex everywhere.”

“Hey, at least Seth’s face isn’t on any of them,” Dean remarked. “I think I probably would have been arrested for vandalism again by now.”

“I still don’t know how they let you into Canada sometimes, man.”

“Hey, neither do I.”

The two of them laughed as they stopped on a street corner, waiting to cross over to where the Second Cup was. The laughter died down and there was silence again as they looked away from each other. Sami couldn’t help but recall the night at Xavier’s house, where Dean drunkenly slurred out to Roman that he thought Sami was cute. Well, and _other things._ Sami didn’t try to think about it too much since he had Finn at the time and all and Dean didn’t seem that interested anymore.

Still, he was told that people were truthful when they were drunk. For better or worse.

The light turned green and Sami scratched at his beard as they began to cross the street. “So… um… How have things been with you and Roman?”

Dean shrugged. “I don’t know. They’ve been. We definitely function better as roommates without Seth around. We’re playing music we like. It’s… it’s pretty alright.”

They stopped out in front of the coffee shop, Sami looking up at Dean with a smile. “Well, I’m glad to hear that, at least.”

“Why do you even ask,” Dead inquired.

Sami shrugged. “I don’t know. Just been thinking about a lot of things lately. Like how happy we were when we first started as a band, even though you gave me shit like all the time.”

“Well yeah, because I thought you were cute.”

Sami’s eyes went wide at that, which just caused Dean to laugh. “What? You really that surprised?”

“I mean, a little? You’re just always so…”

“Assholish?”

“I was going to say caustic, but yeah, that works too.”

Dean shrugged as he leaned against the outside wall of the Second Cup. “I mean, you kind of have to be with the path that got me here. I’m not going to apologize for that. Do kind of regret never asking you out, but hindsight 20/20 and all that shit.”

“Why bring it up now though?”

“Because you’re single and we’re not in a band anymore?”

Sami felt his cheeks flush as he looked towards the ground. “I mean, I’m flattered, but…”

“Relax, Zayn,” Dean assured, putting his hand on Sami’s shoulder. “I’m over it. I’m not expecting anything from you and I’m not saying this as some weird confession now that your boyfriend is long gone and I can be _free about my feelings_. I just… I thought you’d like to know that someone out there still thinks you’re pretty special.”

Sami felt the corners of his mouth pull into a smile at that as he looked back at Dean. “Thanks Dean. In a weird, weird way, I appreciate that.”

“You’re welcome, buddy,” Dean said, lightly tapping at Sami’s shoulder. “Though, if you ever do want to make out or something, you know where to find me.”

Sami looked up at Dean. “I mean… It couldn’t hurt, right?”

“What? Now?”

“Sure, why not?”

Sami then wrapped his arms around Dean’s neck, pressing himself close to Dean’s face. With a slight swallow, Dean pressed his lips against Sami’s. For a few quick seconds, the two reacted to each other fervently, with sloppy lips and lashing tongues.

However, as quickly as they were brought together, a jolt went through them to pull apart. The two of them looked at each other with wide eyes, shocked at what they just did. Sami cleared his throat as he wiped away at his lips. “Well… that was…”

“Horrible for everyone,” Dean finished.

“Yeah. No other way to phrase that.”

“Well, at least we tried. Let’s go get some fucking coffee then.”

Sami couldn’t help but laugh a little at that, awkward as it all felt. For once, it felt like his life was approaching its usual level of abnormal.

Still, he wasn’t mentioning this to Bayley. _Ever._

\---

_Hey Nattie,_

_That’s no problem! There’s a bus leaving here tomorrow. I’d be there by the 6th. I know that’s short notice. Text me if that’s a problem._

_I look forward to meeting the cats._

_-Sami_

\---

“I can’t believe you’re doing this,” Bayley muttered as she walked up to the bus with Sami.

“Well, I don’t think I’ll be gone forever,” Sami sighed. “I just… I guess you could call it a wilderness retreat.”

“That’s what I’ve been trying to say,” Sasha piped in behind them.

“Yeah, but remember how I met you not too far from here because you ran away from another province? I don’t want you ghosting from here either.”

“I’m not ghosting, _habibti._ I just need to get out of this city for a bit. I just don’t know how long that will be.”

Bayley sighed as she wrapped her arms around Sami’s middle, pulling him in for a tight hug and resting her head against his chest. “Come back soon, okay? I can’t live without the only man I’ll ever need.”

Sami laughed as he returned Bayley’s hug. “Don’t worry, you’ll be the first to know.”

“Which means I’ll be the second,” Sasha said as Bayley broke away and she squeezed in for her own hug. “You know I love you too, right?”

“I know, Sasha,” Sami whispered as he returned Sasha’s hug. “I know.”

With his goodbyes, Sami held onto the straps of his backpack as he stepped onto the bus and showed his ticket to the driver. As he settled into his seat, he looked out the window to the dingy bus station and to where Bayley and Sasha stood watching him, waving as they waited for the bus to depart.

He hoped this wasn’t running away, but he really wasn’t sure what home was right now either. He certainly couldn’t make it in their spare room though, surrounded by boxes that weren’t his to begin with.

\---

Sami curled up on himself, feeling the warmth of the sunlight streaming in through the window. He rubbed his eyes as he let his vision refocus.

It was Finn’s place. His place. _Their_ place.

He heard the whistling of the tea kettle in the kitchen and he sat up, drifting slowly towards it. Was he really home?

As he turned into the kitchen, Sami scanned the room for someone else. Finn or Hunter or whoever. Except he was all alone, except for the boiling tea kettle. “Hello,” Sami called out into the room.

“Saaaaami,” a voice hissed in time with the tea kettle.

Sami froze up as he turned around and looked down the hall. Slowly, the dark figure floated towards him, staring him down. Sami wanted to run, but he felt himself freeze. “Wh-what do you want?”

The dark figure placed its hands on Sami’s shoulder, staring him down with those familiar eyes. As it opened its mouth, Sami braced himself for the worst.

Instead, he was met with a meow.

\---

Sami stirred awake as he felt a sandpapery feeling on his face. He woke up to see a grey and white persian cat sitting on his chest and licking his nose. Sami couldn’t help but chuckle at that. “Hey Pawz. Nattie send you to wake me up?”

Pawz just meowed again and Sami smirked as he lifted the cat off his chest and sat up in bed. If anything, the neediness of Nattie’s cats were keeping him honest about actually getting out of bed.

He grabbed his phone and checked the time. 7 a.m. Calgary time, so that meant it was 9 a.m. in Toronto. On his phone, there were several texts from Bayley from a few hours before filled with silly online Valentines and messages of love.

Valentine’s Day. Sami had been here a week and it was Valentine’s Day now.

Sami’s heart dropped a little bit as he stood up and scooped up Pawz into his arm. “What do you say, Pawz? Want to be my Valentine today?”

The cat just growled. Sami snorted. “I guess that’s a no.”

As he let the cat down, he followed him out into the warmth of the Hart kitchen. “Mornin’ everyone.”

A man with long grey hair grunted in response, which caused a shush from a blonde woman who was finishing pouring cups of coffee. “Uncle Bret, what have I told you about being nice to our guest?”

“More like freeloader, Nattie,” Bret muttered as he took a cup of coffee from the woman named Nattie. “Guests know when they’re leaving.”

“Happy Valentine’s Day to you too, Bret,” Sami sighed as he sat down at the kitchen table next to Tyson. For some reason, it comforted Sami to know that the old man had been relatively unchanged from his summers going to fight camp in Calgary. Not to say that was a good thing, but he still had a fondness for the man.

Bret just grunted again as he took a sip from his coffee and leaned over to kiss Nattie on the cheek. “I’ll be at my place if you need me or your dad.”

“You got it,” Nattie said sweetly as she went back to cooking breakfast.

“Need help, sweetie,” Tyson asked, leaning on the table.

“Uh uh,” Nattie responded. “You promised you’d make dinner tonight, so I’ll make breakfast. We had a deal.”

“I promised dinner,” Tyson asked playfully.

“You did! And don’t just get Indian and tell me you made it. I know when you’re lying.”

Sami snickered as he leaned over to look at Nattie. “I don’t how many times I’ve said it this week, but I love you guys.”

Nattie smiled as she flipped the pancakes on the griddle. Speaking of unchanged, his friends Nattie and Tyson had remained together since their days of summer puppy love at Camp Owen. Where most relationships from those summers had fallen apart in the wake of separation and teenage angst, Nattie and Tyson had persevered and grown. He hadn’t seen them since their wedding years ago that he attended with Kevin. Even before then, they had been couple goals for him.

“Any plans for tonight,” Sami asked with a smile.

“Just dinner and a movie at home,” Tyson replied with a grin. “Real boring stuff, I assure you.”

“It’s only as boring as you make it,” Nattie said as she walked over to the table with pancakes and turkey bacon. “And don’t worry, Sami. There’s enough there for you to enjoy too.”

“Thanks Nat,” Sami responded, standing up to help her with the dishes and coffee. They set the rest of the table together before sitting back down.

“So what about you, Sami,” Nattie asked, leaning her chin in her palm as Sami moved pancakes onto his plate. “Any plans?”

Sami sighed and just shrugged as he bit down on a piece of turkey bacon. “I don’t know. I’ll probably just go into town and explore. Get my mind off Fi- my ex.”

“Is anyone else from camp still in Calgary,” Tyson asked to Nattie, mouth full of pancakes.

“As permanent residents, no,” Nattie said thoughtfully. She then looked at Sami with mischievous eyes. “Though, I thought I might have seen that Kenny is in town for a couple of days before going to Toronto. Maybe you two could meet up again.”

Sami snorted again. “Nattie, I don’t think me hooking back up with my camp boyfriend is going to end as well as it did for you.”

She shrugged and looked back over at Tyson. “Well, it was worth a shot.”

As they finished the meal, Tyson stood up and gently kissed Nattie. “I gotta go to work, sweetie. Thanks again for breakfast.”

“Anytime love,” Nattie cooed. “Drive safe.”

They kissed again before Tyson finished off his coffee and headed out the door with a wave to Sami. Sami waved back. “Seeya Tyson.”

As the door shut behind him, Sami looked back at Nattie. “Man, how do you guys do it?”

“Do what?”

“Y’know… be all loving after being together for that long? I feel like I gotta be missing something with how disastrous all my relationships have ended up.”

Nattie smirked a little as she traced her thumb along the edge of her cup. “Well, it takes a lot of hard work and communication, but I think it’s also a willingness to admit that you’re both flawed.”

Sami raised an eyebrow at that. “How do you mean?”

“Well, you’re not going to get anywhere if you pretend everything is okay, right? It’s just gonna blow up in your face and get messy,” Nattie said, gesturing and making a disgusted face. She then pulled her hands together like she was holding onto an invisible rope. “But… if you’re willing to embrace the messy parts of yourself and each other, well… then it gets easier from there.”

Suddenly, an alarm started beeping and Nattie scrambled to check her phone. “Crap. I gotta get ready for work. Sami, do you mind feeding the cats for me?”

Sami’s eyes widened. “All of them?”

“If that’s not a problem.”

Sami breathed in and shook his head. “No, I got you. It’s cool.”

“Thanks Sami,” Nattie said as she stood up and kissed Sami on the head. “You’re the best. I’ll get some chocolate for you, okay?”

“Well, you don’t have to.”

“I want to,” Nattie said. “At least give you something nice today.”

Sami smiled a little to himself as Nattie walked off to get ready. She had been entirely too sweet to him this entire week as he prattled around her family’s property just outside of Calgary, hiking in the woods and sleeping surrounded by her cats. Even as dismissive as her family had been, she and Tyson had nothing but welcome arms and good advice.

It just hadn’t really felt like home, but he had no idea when he would be okay to go back.

\---

The number of Nattie’s indoor cats was quantifiable. Four very spoiled persians and one even more spoiled black cat.

Outside though? Sami was fairly certain every feral and outdoor cat in the Calgary area knew that Nattie would feed them, so there was something of a gathering every morning outside the back door of Nattie’s house as a clowder of cats surrounded her with loud meowing.

Well, now it was Sami’s turn.

“Hold on, there’s enough to go around,” he shouted over the meows as he scooped out kibble into the several large bowls that occupied the back porch. “Geez, you’re all impatient.”

“SAMI,” a voice shouted from the other side of the house. “SAMI, WHERE ARE YOU?”

Sami froze, dropping the bag of cat food. As it spilled out, the cats moved to claim it, but Sami didn’t wave them off or try to rescue the remains. 

_Kevin. That was Kevin shouting for him._

As he moved to go inside the house, a crunch of snow and leaves formed as Kevin rounded around the side and looked up at him. “There you are! God, you’re a hard man to find these days.”

Sami found himself groaning, which had to be personal progress. “What are you doing here, Kev? In fact, how did you even find out where I was?”

“Well, it was actually kind of complicated and long winded,” Kevin admitted as he rounded around to the steps of the porch. “But then I just asked Xavier and he told me he heard you had run off to Calgary for some sort of ‘wilderness sabbatical,’ so I drew my own conclusions.”

Sami sighed as he rubbed at his face with his gloved hands. The gossip tree of Bayley struck again, even when he knew she would have never told Kevin directly. “Okay, so you remembered the wedding we took a road trip to. Big deal. Doesn’t tell me why you’re here.”

Kevin stood at the bottom of the steps, looking up at Sami and shoving his hands into his coat pockets. “Look, Sami, can we talk?”

“About what? You berated me, you cheated on me, you broke my heart to the point I ran away to a completely different province, and then you tried to expedite me getting killed by one of Finn’s exes. I’m sort of over talking.”

Kevin groaned and looked towards the sky. “I don’t want to talk about us, Sami. I’m here to talk about Hunter.”

Sami could feel his brain start to scream at the name, but he tried not to show it externally. “What about him?”

“I don’t know,” Kevin admitted, leaning against the railing of the porch steps. “I can’t quite put my finger on it, but he’s bad news. He hired me to be in your friend Seth’s back up band, and he’s been manipulating him like you wouldn’t believe. I know I’m a piece of shit, but I can tell that he’s even worse.”

“Why should I care,” Sami asked, stepping over the cats to the top of the steps. “Seth made his choice. He stopped being my problem when he picked fame over friendship.”

“That’s a lie and you know it,” Kevin retorted. “You care about everyone.”

“And see where that’s gotten me?!”

Sami gasped as the words spilled out of his mouth and Kevin looked at him in shock. He then sighed as he sat down on the top step and held his head in his hands. “You should just go, Kev. I’m no help to anyone right now.”

A silence between the two grew for a few seconds before Kevin moved up the steps. “You mind if I sit next to you for a second?”

“I do, but I know you’re going to do it anyway.”

“Yeah, that’s true,” Kevin admitted as sat next to Sami, not leaving much room. He sighed as he looked over at Sami. “Okay, I know I fucked a lot of this up.”

“You think?”

“But I’ve been thinking a lot about things since I last saw you and maybe it’s time for me to reassess some things.”

“Kevin, if this is leading to some confession of love, I don’t want to hear it.”

“God no, never,” Kevin responded. “Though I guess the break up could have gone better?”

Sami looked up and glared at Kevin for that. “You _guess_?”

Kevin held up his hands at that. “Okay, fine, I was a fucking idiot back then. And maybe now because I was willing for you to die that night at Lee’s. And if I stop and think about that long enough that’s…”

“Unsettling?”

“Yeah, a bit.”

Sami looked over at Kevin, studying his face for a few seconds. In some ways, he was still like the guy he dated when he was still in high school and college. In other ways, he was unrecognizable. A different person from every angle Sami saw him at. He wondered if Kevin could say the same about him. “Kevin, get to the point and tell me why you’re here. Why you’d even bother to travel to Calgary to convince me to come back to the city I ran away to in order to get away from you? Because right now, it sounds like you want me to walk into a trap.”

Kevin grumbled as he scrubbed at his beard with his gloved hands. “You know, I never answered your question at Lee’s.”

Sami groaned. “Which one?”

“About if I was dating Adrian,” Kevin responded. “The answer is no, I wasn’t, but I liked him enough. He liked me too, in some way. I feel like we could have been something, but I guess we were both so preoccupied on you and Finn that we never got a chance to see.”

That made Sami feel suddenly confused. “You were preoccupied on me? You were the one who killed this relationship.”

“That is true,” Kevin admitted, “But maybe some of it was that my dumb ass didn’t know how to talk to you about the things that were bothering me. The way you shut down, the ways you lash out when you’re upset, the way you beat yourself up for everything…”

“The messy parts,” Sami mumbled, echoing Nattie’s words from earlier.

“Yeah, exactly,” Kevin stated. “I didn’t know how to deal with it after so long, so took the worst possible route to handle it. And I thought I was free, but you were still there in my brain. Like a palimpsest.”

“So what,” Sami asked. “You’re here to clear your conscience?”

“No,” Kevin said matter-of-factly, “I’m here because I know you’re a better person, even with all the messy bits. And I know how Hunter has tried to ruin your life and happiness. Way worse than I could ever do or did. And if anyone has a chance of taking that creep out and protecting your friends, it’s you.”

Sami breathed in, closing his eyes and feeling the cold around him. If he could tell himself from six years ago, sad and unsure, that this conversation was happening, he would never believe it. He couldn’t even believe it now. “Kevin, I…”

Suddenly, he heard a noise off in the woods. His eyes flung open as he stood up and looked at the treeline. “You hear that?”

“Hear what,” Kevin asked, his voice confused. “It’s probably just the cats.”

“No, it sounded… bigger.”

Sami came down off the steps, keeping his eyes towards the woods and his stance ready to fight. He could feel his chest burning from where his sword was, but he wasn’t ready to take that out. Not yet. “Hello?”

A figure then leapt out of the woods and rushed towards Sami. He stumbled back as he blocked himself for protection. The figure then knocked him onto the ground and laughed. Sami looked up and gasped.

In front of him was him. Well, a version of him cast in shadow, permeating a dark sort of energy that put Sami at ill-ease. “NegaSami,” he whispered as he scrambled to his feet.

The NegaSami smirked as it threw a punch at Sami, which he quickly blocked. Sami then went for a flurry of hits that the NegaSami bobbed and weaved through, making it impossible for Sami to hit.

“WHAT ARE YOU DOING,” Kevin shouted.

“What does it look like I’m doing,” Sami shouted back as he blocked another hit. “I’m trying to fight him!”

“And then what? Keep running until you’re at the coast,” Kevin asked, his voice at a level of sincere Sami hadn’t heard in years. “Sami, that thing is you. You can run from other things, but you can’t keep running from yourself.”

Sami turned and looked back at NegaSami. NegaSami hissed, his voice all smoke and static. Sami looked him in the eye, seeing the fear, sadness, frustration and insecurity that had existed in the past six years. This was the thing that kept trying to kill him in his dreams, but it was no monster or outside force. It was just him. All him. “Hey… it’s okay.”

NegaSami shrunk back, trying to get away from him, but Sami grabbed onto his wrist and pulled him closer. “No, no. I’m not running away again and neither are you. It’s okay.”

The face of NegaSami began to crumple in tears and Sami pulled him in close, embracing him. Suddenly, Sami felt the dark energy wrap around him. First in a hug, but then in a wave that seemed to overtake his body. As it focused in, Sami felt a large push that knocked him over onto the snowy ground. He gasped, breathing in the cold air and colder darkness.

“Sami,” Kevin yelled, running over to him. “Jesus Christ, are you okay?”

“Yeah,” Sami breathed, feeling at his face wet with tears. “I… I’ve never been better.”

He slowly got himself to a sitting position, which is when Kevin extended a hand to help him up. Sami initially looked at it with confusion, but then took his hand and let Kevin help pull him off the ground. “So, what do you want to do now, Sami?”

Sami looked around at the backyard of Nattie’s place. A beautiful property for sure, but it was just a resting place for him. This wasn’t where he needed to be. Not today, of all days. “I think I’m ready to go home.”

\---

_Nattie and Tyson,_

_Thank you so much for your hospitality over this past week. Unfortunately, something came up and I have to head back home to Toronto right away. (I’m sure Bret is relieved.)_

_I left some money to replace the cat food I accidentally spilled on the back porch. It probably isn’t enough, but hey, the cats are happy at least._

_You guys are the best. Let me know if you’re ever in Toronto._

_Have the happiest of Valentine’s Day, you crazy kids._

_Love,  
Sami_

\---

“You sure about this, Kev?”

“Yeah, I’m sure,” Kevin said, looking at his ticket. “I really need to go back to Montreal and think about things some. Take my own wilderness sabbatical, as it were.”

Sami tugged at his backpack strap, holding the ticket to Toronto that Kevin had bought for him in his hand. He had tried to protest, but Kevin just growled and insisted that he do one last nice thing for Sami, dammit. “Well, whatever you’re looking for, I hope you find it.”

“Thanks,” Kevin said quietly. He looked back at Sami for a second and Sami felt his heart skip a beat. For a second, they were kids again and maybe still in love.

But only for a second.

“Just… take care of yourself, okay Kev?”

“Yeah, you too. Don’t get killed by Hunter, okay?”

“I’ll try my best.”

Another awkward silence grew, the two unsure of what to say next. Finally, Sami just sighed. “Is it weird if I hug you no-”

Before the question finished coming out of his mouth, Kevin wrapped Sami in a massive hug that caused Sami to stumble back some. Partially out of surprise, but also out of the sheer force Kevin put into it. Sami wrapped his arms around Kevin, feeling a strong nostalgic pull in his heart. There were parts of Kevin that Sami still loved. Still missed.

But those had to stay in the past.

As they broke apart, Sami felt like a weight that had been there for six years had suddenly been lifted. Kevin sniffed and shook out his head. “Okay then, never doing that again.”

Sami chuckled as he began to turn away. “Agreed. Safe travels, Kev.”

“You too, Sami,” Kevin responded with a wave. “Be the best warrior or something like that. I don’t care.”

Sami just shook his head as he turned all the way towards the gate for Toronto. In terms of closure, it was unexpected, but better than he could have hoped.

That was the past though. It was time to go home and face the future.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, 'clowder' is the correct collective noun for cats. In fact, I had to choose between that, 'pounce' and 'destruction.'


	16. Black Sheep, Come Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sami Zayn goes back to Toronto. This time? _It's personal._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So apparently when I said "I'm taking a writing break for Thanksgiving," what I actually meant was "Ehhh, the next two chapters are kind of short. Let me see how much I can write before my mom gets into town." I guess there being a tangible ending in sight now will do that to a girl.

_O M G. I’m so excited you’re coming back to kick some ass, Sami! Meet us at the DX. Me and Sasha want a front row seat to you beating Hunter!!!_

Sami smiled nervously at his phone as he jumped off the TTC bus in front of the DX Theater, which was bustling with hipsters clamoring to get in.

It had been a long day flying from Calgary to Toronto. Sami was exhausted, but he was too anxious to sleep on the flight. Plus, any time he tried, he could only see Hunter’s smug face behind his eyelids. So reading the same five articles about business in the tattered magazine in the pocket in front of him it was.

The thought of going back to Bayley and Sasha’s to sleep instead of fighting Hunter had occurred to him, but once he stepped off the bus and looked at the DX, his exhaustion suddenly melted away. Was it more anxiety? Fear? Adrenaline? Either way, something stirred inside of him and he suddenly felt ready to go again.

Sami hitched the backpack up his shoulders as he walked up to the door of the club, determined as ever.

Right until the flippy haired bouncer at the door stopped him. “Whoa man, where do you think you’re going?”

“Uh… in?”

“No way. Back of the line, buddy.”

Sami groaned as he peered at the bouncer’s name tag. “Listen… Johnny. I know you’re doing your job, but I kinda have to do something important with Hunter tonight.”

Johnny the bouncer’s eyes lit up. “Oh! Why didn’t you say so? You might be on the list then.”

Sami raised an eyebrow as Johnny picked up a clipboard. “I mean, I could be. Sami Zayn is the name.”

Johnny scanned down the list, making clicking noises with his tongue before making a noise of confirmation. “Ah, yeah. Here you are. In fact, your name is underlined in red like three times. Huh…”

Yeah, that didn’t make Sami feel great, but he mustered up his best smile. “Well, good to know. Thanks, Johnny.”

Johnny the bouncer then unhooked the velvet rope to let him in. Sami dipped into the door and found himself in a small, dimly lit lobby. There were no doors except the one behind him and ones for an elevator in front of him. Right then, all the underworld myths his English teacher talked about in high school seemed to rush forward into his head, forming a big amalgamation of danger and warning.

However, there was only one way out of this, and he was already a marked man. Even if those marks were three red lines under his name.

He pressed the down button and the elevator pinged, opening its doors. It seemed to echo in Sami’s ears like a bell. He took a deep breath and stepped inside, looking at the glass side that face into darkness with wariness. In an instant, the doors snapped shut behind him and the elevator began to descend. Sami felt tense in the darkness that surrounded, but then felt an awe as the elevator came into proximity of the club itself.

The DX Theater was modern and sleek, but with the right amount of neon to make it seem retro. There were a ton of people milling about, either drinking in lounge space, playing arcade games, sidled up to the bars, or even just dancing to the loud thumping music that was making the elevator walls rattle. Towards the furthest wall, a pyramid structure jutted out with a stage on top of it. Above the stage was an oblique circular rig that Sami could only assume were lights. It felt like something out of a sci-fi movie or a really bizarre dream.

Then again, this was the club of a man who dealt with Subspace and fantasy. Sami was only partially sure he was in real space to begin with anyway.

The elevator came to a stop and the doors dinged open, slamming Sami with a wall of sounds. With a deep breath, he grabbed onto his backpack and walked out into the club.

“Bag check, sir?”

Sami was caught off guard by the voice addressing him before he looked to see a bald man with a beard and a nice button down vest looking at him from a half door in a closet. “Uh, sorry,” Sami apologized as he looked at the man’s name plaque on the counter, “Tommaso. I don’t have any cash left.”

“Don’t worry, it’s complimentary tonight,” he said politely. Tommaso then dropped his voice. “I think Mr. Helmsley is feeling more generous than usual since it’s the opening and all.”

“I certainly hope so,” Sami replied as he took his bag and coat off and exchanged them with Tommaso for a ticket. As he wandered off into the club, Sami scanned his eyes for anyone he knew. Bayley, Sasha, Seth, Xavier, Dean, Roman… Hell, he’d even take Charlotte at this point.

Or maybe even Finn, if he was even here to begin with. Sami had to admit that he didn’t really know what “Hunter got to me” even meant, but he had entertained a few possibilities over the past three months. Several of them involved Finn running back to Hunter, crying into his large and muscled chest over every mistake Sami had made.

“Sami,” an Australian voice asked over the crowd.

Sami turned to see a short woman with long dirty blond hair in a leather jacket and mirror aviators looking at him. She lifted her glasses and looked at Sami with surprise. Granted, he was just as surprised as she was. “Emma?”

“I thought that was you,” she exclaimed. “How have you been?”

“Uh, okay,” Sami admitted, feeling extremely confused. “Kinda surprised to see you here since you said you were… y’know, going back to Australia.”

“I did, yeah,” Emma responded with a nod, looking real guilty. “And I’ve felt kinda bad because I broke my own rule after I cancelled our date, which is why I came back here.”

Sami couldn’t help but crack an amused smile at that. “Oh? Who’s the lucky g-”

“Emma Honey, there you are,” Dana shouted, walking over with drinks. “I thought I lost you in here.”

“Don’t worry, Dana Bunny,” Emma said, kissing her on the cheek. “It’s not that big. I’m sure you would have found me.”

Dana cooed before she looked over at Sami with a raised brow. “Oh hi, Sami. I didn’t think you were still in town. I heard rumors from Charlotte that you had become a mountain man or something like that.”

“Only partially true,” Sami chuckled. “Well, you two seem really happy together, so congrats!”

“Thanks,” Emma said, leaning her head against Dana. “I guess sometimes you gotta break all your rules for the right person, huh?”

“SAMI!”

Before Sami could say anything else, he felt a person glom onto his back with a massive hug. He could only guess who it was from there. “Hi Bayley.”

After an eyeroll from Dana, the two disappeared into the crowd and were replaced by a happy Bayley and Sasha rounding around to his front. “You’re back,” Bayley shouted, practically vibrating. “I’m so happy to see you and I’m not just saying that because I’ve had three drinks already.”

“Thanks Bay,” Sami responded, leaning over to kiss her on the head. “Who else is here?”

“Dean and Roman by the bar,” Sasha said, pointing. She then switched her point to the arcade games. “We lost Xavier to DDR a while ago. Tyler is go go dancing somewhere around here. Carmella is off regular dancing with Enzo and Cass. Seth hasn’t performed yet.”

Sami’s eyes scanned around the room to confirm what Sasha was saying. He saw Dean and Roman chatting by the bar and an outline of Xavier catching his breath after a game. Everyone else was currently questionable. “Seen Hunter yet?”

“Not yet,” Bayley said, looking up towards the cavernous ceiling. “He’s probably watching from some secret private room. Like this place is cool, but it also feels like a total secret villain lair. A cool secret villain lair though.”

Sami snorted, looking around the room with a nod of agreement. If this was a trap, it was either effective as hell or a complete waste. “What about Fi-”

“ZAYN IN THE MEMBRANE,” another voice shouted. Sami turned to see Enzo bounding over, Cass and Carmella not too far behind. “Back so soon from the Great White West?”

“Yeah,” Sami responded as he greeted Enzo with a bro hug. “Felt like there were more important things to take care of here.”

“Yeah? Like what?”

Before Sami could respond, the lights above the stage dropped and the crowd stirred up into a frenzy. Sami looked up towards the stage to see fog spilling out as Seth stepped forward out of it. Sami could hardly recognize him, dressed up in some fancy black and white suit with eyeliner and a guitar much nicer than any he had ever owned before. Sami hoped that he was happy, at least, even if the way he went for his dream totally undercut everything they had ever done together.

“Hi, I’m Seth,” he said nervously into the microphone. “And this one’s called ‘Warning Shot.’”

As his guitar roared to life and the backing band kicked in with a raucous rock-electro beat, Sami felt himself bobbing along to the music. Even if he was in “enemy territory,” it felt nice to be back in the world. To surround himself with people that he liked and to be out in the world again after hiding away for so long. Not just in Calgary, but in Bayley’s guest room. He needed this. He needed to be around people.

 _“Don’t drop your guard,”_ Seth growled into the mic. _“Don’t drop your guaaaaaaard.”_

“SAMI,” Carmella screamed, “LOOK OUT!”

Sami turned to see a large figure coming towards him at lighting speed. In the split second from Carmella’s scream, Sami threw his arms up in an X form to block, pushing him back across the floor on his feet as he held steady and a crowd of screaming hipsters parted the way for him as the music came to a halt. As he dropped his arms, he looked out in front of him to see Hunter raising back to a standing position, his arms out in front of him for a fight. “Hi. So nice of you to show up, Sami.”

“Yeah, well, I had nothing better to do today,” Sami retorted as he and Hunter began circling each other. The crowd around them whispered to each other uneasily, wary of what they were witnessing. The inside of Sami’s chest burned, but he knew it wasn’t time for that yet.

“Well, if you brought Finn with you, I’d love to say hello,” Hunter purred with a self-assured smile.

Sami felt a pang at that. He wanted so desperately to scream about it. To unleash a wave of every thought he had over Finn in the past three months, but he knew he couldn’t give Hunter an inch. Instead, he kept his voice level as he tightened his fists. “I haven’t seen Finn in months.”

Hunter’s eyes grew wide as his face contorted in confusion. “Really,” Hunter asked, his veneer of coolness breaking for just a few seconds.

It was Sami’s turn to be confused. “Yeah, really. I don’t know where he is at all. In fact, I thought…”

Suddenly, something cracked open in Sami’s brain as the realization came over him, lifting the three month weight off his heart in a matter of seconds as he dropped his fighting stance. “Oh my god… _He didn’t go back to you.”_

Hunter fumed at the statement, aggressively pushing his glasses up his nose. “All of this for noth…” He then paused and took a deep breath as he recollected himself. “No matter. You’re still here. That’s enough for me.”

He then rushed forward, ready to strike at Sami. Sami dodged out of the way and swung a punch towards Hunter’s head. He was quickly caught in Hunter’s large hand, which practically crushed Sami’s fist as he squeezed. Sami grit his teeth, trying to avoid a scream of pain. He tried to kick at Hunter, but he just plunged his free hand towards Sami’s chest. Sami braced himself for a punch to send him sliding back, but he felt a much more invasive feeling as Hunter’s hand plunged into his chest and yanked out The Power of Love.

Sami gasped as he stumbled back, staring at Hunter in disbelief as he felt at his chest. Something felt hollow and broken in it now. He struggled to hold in a breath as he looked back up. “How… How…”

Hunter just chuckled as he admired the sword. “I always get what I want, Sami. This is beautiful, by the way. You get it from Finn?”

“Give it back,” Sami gasped as he staggered back towards Hunter. He tried his best to stay steady, but ended up falling over onto his knees. He had lived and fought without the sword before. Why did it suddenly hurt without it?

“Why? So you can hold onto something that isn’t even there anymore,” Hunter spat as he walked back towards Sami. He then put the flat of the blade under Sami’s chin, forcing him to look up at him. “You know, I could give you a position in the League. Make Finn’s life a living hell for whoever he dates next.”

Sami knew he had to be serious in this moment with a blade this close to his throat, but he couldn’t help but laugh. “And put whoever is next through the pain you put me and Finn through because you’re a bitter jerk? No thanks, I’ll pass.”

Hunter clicked his tongue in dissatisfaction as he move the blade away from Sami’s chin. “Well, that’s too bad.”

Before Sami could blink, Hunter snapped the blade back towards Sami, driving it deep into his chest. Sami gasped for air as he felt the steel of the sword push through his back. He heard Bayley scream as Hunter withdrew the sword, now dripping in blood. Sami collapsed back, feeling dizzy as the room began to grow dark and he felt something trickle down the side of his mouth.

“Sami, stay with me,” he heard Bayley’s voice say as shadows began to swarm in his vision.

“DRINKS ARE ON ME,” he heard Hunter shout over the growing silence of the club.

The room spun more as Sami closed his eyes and struggled for breath. He had never been lucky with Valentine’s Day, but he decided in his last few breaths that this might be a new personal low.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All I can say is right now? Don't panic. There are four chapters left. Remember chapter 13. Trust me.
> 
> Also? FOUR CHAPTERS LEFT.


	17. Dream About Me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> If this is Heaven, Sami doesn't want to leave.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, I swear I'm actually taking my writing break for Thanksgiving after this. I just needed to get this short chapter I've desperately wanted to write since chapter 13 out of my system before my mom got into town/my job interview tomorrow.

Sami felt the searing light of the desert on his eyelids as he stirred awake, groaning. He didn’t feel any physical pain right now, but the mental anguish was sure to last for however long he was going to be here.

He lost. Stabbed through the heart by his own sword. He didn’t even stand a chance against Hunter, who killed him not just in front of his own friends, but the entire hipster population of Toronto. To make matters worse, it seemed like the afterlife was just the permanent residence of his worst dreams.

He bashed the back of his head against the sand as the realization set in. “Oh god, I’m dead.”

“You’re not dead,” a soft Irish voice said.

Even in the desert, a chill ran down Sami’s spine as a shadow cast itself over him. He scrambled to a sitting position as he looked up to see a man in a black leather jacket with a bandana over his mouth, a hood over his head, and a messenger bag slung across his body. The man yanked back the hood and pulled the bandana down, revealing himself to match the voice Sami had heard. 

_Finn._

“This is just some weird dream you’re having.”

“Finn,” Sami exclaimed as he got to his feet and reached out for Finn. He grabbed at his shoulder at first, then gently brushed his cheek. Even in this state, he felt warm and real. “Oh my god, it really is you.”

“Hi Sami,” Finn said gently, a sad smile growing across his face. “Sorry I took so long.”

“Where have you been,” Sami rasped, trying his best to hold back the tears teetering at the edge of his eyes. “I called you. Okay, like once. Between crying jags.”

“Yeah, I know. I got it. I promise I did. And I wanted to call you back,” Finn drifted off, sighing as he looked at his feet. “I guess I was scared.”

“Of what?”

Finn looked back at Sami, biting his lip. “Hunter called me the day I left. He didn’t say much, but he made it clear he was looking to hurt you. That’s why I ran. It wasn’t because of what you said the night before. I thought with everything that was happening, I was making your life worse. That if I just disappeared, he’d leave you alone and you could go on living your life because you’re so tough.”

“You think I’m tough,” Sami asked incredulously. 

“Well, yeah,” Finn insisted. “But I’m starting to see now that I was wrong about thinking you were going to be safe or that it wasn’t going to hurt.”

Sami felt along his own chest, feeling the phantom pain of where Hunter had stabbed him. “I mean, yeah, but that isn’t your fault.”

“It is though,” Finn cried, “It is because you would have never have gotten into this whole thing if it wasn’t for me. Hunter would have never sent the exes after you, and you wouldn’t be here. I’m just a curse to everyone I love.”

“No you’re not.”

Sami then gently cupped Finn’s face in his hands, looking him right in his blue eyes. “Finn, my life kinda sucked before I met you, and being with you taught me so much. And I should be mad that you’re now just showing up after the stupid shit I said and getting stabbed through the heart, but with everything that has happened, I mostly just want to kiss you right now.”

“Okay,” Finn said with a nod as he pressed his nose against Sami’s. “Okay.”

The second ‘okay’ was barely out of Finn’s mouth when Sami’s lips were on his. Finn inhaled sharply through his nose before he sunk into the kiss, threading his fingers through Sami’s hair as he pressed his tongue against Sami’s. Suddenly, he broke off, catching his breath. “Wait… Sami. I need to tell you why I really came back.”

“Okay,” Sami said his voice in a daze. “Why did you come back, Finn?”

“For myself,” Finn whispered before cringing at himself. “God, no, that sounds so dumb after we’ve just kissed like that, but it was important to say. I had to do all of this to show myself that I don’t have to be the kind of person I was to Adrian or Becky or The Twins or who I was with Hunter anymore. I don’t have to be the one that keeps walking away because things get hard. Because I always do that. I knew with you that I could stay, but I left anyway because I’m a coward at heart. I had to come back to tell you goodbye. To tell you that I’m sor-”

Sami interrupted him by wrapping him in a massive hug that knocked them back onto the sand. He buried his head in the crook of his neck. “You don’t have to say it.”

“I want to though,” Finn said, gently pushing on Sami’s chest to give him some space between the two of them. He then looked Sami in the eye and brushed at his cheek. “I’m sorry, Sami. I’m sorry for walking out. I’m sorry for dragging you into all of this. I’m sorry for not being more open about the things I’ve done.”

“It’s okay,” Sami hushed, turning to kiss at his hand.

“No it’s not!”

“I told you once I didn’t care about your past,” Sami said, pressing his forehead against Finn’s. “I still mean that, alright? And yeah, we both have shit we need to work on, but I forgive you. I hope you can forgive me too.”

“Love, I forgave you a while ago,” Finn mumbled as he pressed his lips up against Sami’s.

“Good,” Sami mumbled between gentle kisses. “Good. I just needed to know.”

The two of them kissed slow and passionate as they rolled over onto their sides, looking at each other with love and disbelief. “I love you, Sami.”

“I love you too, Finn,” Sami whispered. “God, if this really is a dream, I don’t want to wake up.”

“Umm,” Finn said uneasily. “I may have fudged that a little. You really are dead, Sami.”

Sami blinked at Finn, feeling confused. “Soooo… this is the afterlife and this isn’t really you?”

“No,” Finn sighed, scratching at his beard. “It’s me alright.”

Sami’s face contorted in confusion. “Okay, so if I’m dead, but this isn’t the afterlife, then what the hell is going o-”

Suddenly, a bright light and a happy bubbly noise flashed over them. Sami turned his head to see a pixelated version of his head floating in the air above him. Sami gasped as Finn sat up in confusion. “What is that, Sami?”

Sami just smiled as he sat up, realizing what was going on. It was the extra life from the night at the Ninth Circle, and it was coming into play. “Let’s just say I’m getting second chances in more way than one today.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> YEP! Finn is back and there are three chapters left. What can happen between now and then?
> 
> Either way, to paraphrase a friend of mine, [rock that holiday shit until you hit unpause.](https://professorshyguy.bandcamp.com/track/dj-roborob-unpause-feat-professor-shyguy) Love you guys!


	18. Unpause

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sami's alive! But how long until Hunter tries to reverse that?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this chapter ended up being shorter than I expected, but the next two chapters will probably make up for it.
> 
> And oh wow, there's only two chapters left. I'm feeling a certain way about this now.

Sami’s eyes flew open as he took a large and gasping breath. He seemed nearly blind at first, with everything appearing in a bright flash of white before settling into the darkness of the club around him. As his vision and hearing adjusted back, he felt soft hands on his face. “Sami! You’re alive,” Bayley said tearfully.

“Yeah,” Sami breathed, his eyes darting back and forth between his friends hovering over him. Sasha hovering over Bayley, her eyes relieved. Xavier panting from DDR. Carmella clinging to an angry looking Enzo and Cass. Dean and Roman looking even angrier. Even Tyler had wandered into the group, looking made up and concerned, though he would never admit it. “I had an extra life.”

“Knew it,” Roman grinned, clapping his hands together in satisfaction.

“What,” he heard Hunter shout in the distance. “How is he still al-”

Before Hunter could finish his thought, Sami felt another burning sensation in his chest. He arched back, letting out a yelp as he felt something like heat and lightning emerge from him. It leapt out onto the dance floor, forming a vaguely human shape before dissolving and leaving Finn in its place. “He… He’s real,” Sami whispered up to a surprised looking Bayley.

“What happened while you were dead, Sami?”

“I’ll explain later.”

As he breathed in again, Sami turned on his side to see Hunter looking on in disbelief. “You,” Hunter growled.

“Me,” Finn replied, dropping his hood back down.

“The prodigal son returns then,” Hunter mused as he spun the sword around, planting the tip by his feet. Sami felt himself cringe at the way it was being used.

“Oh, can you not,” Finn groaned. “We dated. Don’t call me ‘son’ of any kind.”

“What would you prefer then? ‘Baby?’ ‘Sweetie?’ Or what is that word Sami calls you?”

“None of them,” Finn growled as he set himself in a fighting stance. “I didn’t come back for you.”

Hunter sighed as he leaned on Sami’s sword. “Well, that’s too bad then.”

Before Finn could say anything else, Hunter raised his arm up and snapped his fingers. Suddenly, the obelisk above the stage hissed to life, cracking open in a mechanical whirr. Sami looked up to see Seth scrambling away from his place on the stage as a rush of cold air came over the club and a crystalline looking set of pods spun downwards and settled into place, hanging above the stage like a stalactite. Sami squinted up at them, seeing people inside the pods, frozen and impeccably dressed. There were a couple of people Sami didn’t recognize, but alarm bells went off in his head as soon as he saw the sleeping figures of Becky and Adrian facing out towards him. “The exes,” he muttered as he stood up. “You froze them.”

“Well, I have to keep my failed experiments in check somehow,” Hunter mused as he looked up at the structure. “The boys did the best they could. Miz especially so, even with his wife. Becky was obstinate, fighting me the entire way. I did have high hopes for the Bellas though, especially with how successfully I used all three of them to drive Finn to me three years ago…”

“Used them,” Finn mumbled under his breath before the realization dawned on him. As Sami walked up beside him, he saw the look in his eyes turn from confusion to anger almost immediately. “You mind controlled us. That’s why I can’t explain why I cheated on Brie. And then you mind controlled my exes to try and get them to kill Sami.”

“I mean, they all responded to that drunken Craigslist rant about you,” Hunter said with a shrug and a laugh. “Though that admittedly made the rest of my plan stupidly easy.”

Finn growled, which turned into a scream as he ran towards Hunter. As he jumped up for a punch, Hunter swatted him out of the way with ease. Sami ran over and caught Finn, bowling them both over onto the ground. “You fucker,” Finn shouted as Sami held him back. “They aren’t experiments. Let them go!”

“I guess I could,” Hunter facetiously mused, “Or I could have you join them. There’s an empty pod for you, after all.”

“Why the fuck do you even care about me,” Finn shouted back. “You mostly used me as arm candy anyway. You ignored me at best and berated me at worst when I wasn’t staying in the lines.”

“Oh c’mon now, it wasn’t _that_ bad.”

“YOU ONCE YELLED AT ME ABOUT MONEY FOR REORDERING YOUR DRINK AT AN OPEN BAR.”

Hunter sighed as he lowered his glasses and rubbed at his eyes. “Finn, you of all people should have realized by now. I’m a control freak. And that’s exactly what all of this was…”

As Finn escaped Sami’s grasp, Hunter flung his arms out, sending a wave of glowing energy over the club. A silence spread at first, but was soon met with yelling and arguing from all sides.

“I’ve told you a million times, Bayley! I hate it when you buy skim milk!”

“Enzo, why are you always so immature when we go out?! God, and Cass, why do you even put up with it?!”

“If you had just bothered to listen to me ONCE, Tyler!”

“STOP LORDING YOUR FUCKING DEGREE OVER ME, ROMAN.”

As Sami listened to the sniping around them, both serious and inane, Sami squeezed his eyes shut, trying to block it out. Still, the red hot edges of everyone’s anger burned at his brain. “God, can everyone just shut up?”

“Oh, now he shows anger,” Finn said sarcastically.

“Hey, I got angry plenty of times we were together, okay?”

“Not when it mattered.”

“Look, I apologized for what I said, but if that wasn’t good enough for you Finn, why did you even bother coming back?”

“I told you,” Finn hissed through gritted teeth as he pressed his fingers to his temples in frustration. “Though, I guess it doesn’t matter, does it? You can’t even move on from the past that you could barely see me. Story of my life.”

Finn turned away from Sami, causing Sami to sigh. “No, don’t be like that.”

“Well, you’re being like that,” Finn spat.

“I think I got a lot on my plate considering _I’ve been killed once_ tonight by one of your exes,” Sami huffed. “Why am I still fighting him?! You left. This should have ended by now.”

Finn turned, glaring at Sami. “I CAME BACK, DIDN’T I?!”

Suddenly a sword swiped between them, causing them to jump back. Hunter stood to the side, wearing a crooked grin. “Falling apart like they usually do, huh Finn?”

“Come. Off. It,” he hissed as he jumped over a thrusting Hunter, dragging him to the ground with a hard _thud._ “YOU manipulated me. YOU manipulated my exes.”

“Yeah, well, maybe think as to why they’d all respond to a drunk Craigslist post in the first place,” Hunter sniped, swiping at Sami’s legs, causing Sami to jump in the air and stumble back.

Finn took a step back, taking a deep breath before letting out an even deeper sigh. “You’re right… why do I keep bothering with this?”

Sami looked over at Finn as he began to glow the similar way he did the night he left. He gasped as he ran back over to Finn, reaching out. “Finn. No! Don’t leave!”

“Sami, I’m sor-”

Before the words could finish from his mouth, Finn gasped as a sword was shoved through his back. As Hunter withdrew the bloody sword with an evil smile, blood bubbled from Finn’s mouth as he collapsed onto the ground, muttering curses as he held his hand to his chest. The club fell silent again as the red edges and every angry thought disappeared from Sami’s mind. He slid over to Finn on his knees, reaching out for his free hand. “Finn, baby…”

“So that’s how he did it,” Hunter mused.

Sami looked up at Hunter, his stomach turning at the sight of Finn’s blood on the sword that used to be his. “What are you talking about?”

“Ehh, the music production and the modeling agency are just hobbies,” Hunter said, looming over the two of them. “I specialize in emotional warfare. Trapping people in their own minds to control them. Pull them back when I need them. This guy, however? He hates himself so much that he used it to advantage. He used Subspace to untangle himself and escape. Well… to a point.”

As Hunter walked away from them, Sami turned back to Finn, whose breath was getting more labored. He rested Finn’s head in his lap, gently stroking his face. “Finn, I'm sorry. Please stay with me.”

“I’ll be okay,” Finn gasped, looking up at Sami. “Could have thought that one through a bit better.”

Sami let out a small chuckle before looking up at Hunter’s turned back. “So he’s a mind controller, huh?”

“Yeah,” Finn groaned, “May have undersold it when I called him a ‘manipulator.’ God, I don’t even know why I was surprised by the fact he did that to me and the Twins. I was an ongoing experiment to him. A toy… He just has this way of getting in my head.”

“I think we can all say that tonight, _habibi.”_

“No, really,” Finn sighed. “He _literally_ has a way of getting in my head.”

Sami blinked at him for a second before he looked over at Finn’s messenger back on the floor next to him. Suddenly, it all came back to him. The day he escaped into Subspace. The… _thing_ that Finn became to chase Sami out.

Could he possibly do it again?

Sami leaned down and kissed Finn on the forehead. “I’ll be right back.”

Gently, he placed Finn’s head down on the floor as he stood up and ran over to the bag. He opened the flap and stared down into the darkness as he unzipped it. He took a deep breath as he placed on leg in.

“Sami, what are you doing,” Finn asked in a weak whisper.

“If I’m lucky, saving the both of us.”

“Sami!”

Before Finn could argue, Sami slipped the other leg into the bag, dropping feet first into the infinite darkness within.


	19. Bury It And Rise Above

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's the final boss stage for Sami and Finn. Will the two prevail over Hunter? And what of their future?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Writing this chapter was a bit stop and go when I got rolling because it's hard to believe I'm almost done with the story.
> 
> Final chapter will come sometime next week. Not sure when yet, but soon.

Sami sped past the darkness for what felt like an eternity, searching desperately for the place he found in Finn’s mind that one time. He closed his eyes and breathed in deep, focusing his mind as the cold air of Subspace rushed through his nostrils. It had to be here. He found it once on accident. He could find it again on purpose.

He reopened his eyes and focused on his surroundings. Below him, he could see the pulsing silhouette of the castle he had stumbled upon months before. Where Hunter was. Where Finn was trapped.

Sami turned himself in mid-air, pointing himself down towards the castle and dropping down at top speed. He saw the stone roof of the castle in front of him, ready to stop his descent, but Sami just extended an arm out and punched through it with a loud and sharp **_CRACK!_**

As the ceiling crumbled from his impact, Sami slid in for a landing. He looked up at the throne, where Hunter sat. Here, he looked like a giant musclebound barbarian warrior king. Here, he was God. Hunter smirked at Sami as he yanked on a leash. On the other end, Finn in briefs made a choking noise for a second before he fell over onto the floor, a delirious smile on his face. “Don’t you see, Sami? This is what Finn wants. This is how I am in his head.”

Hunter then stood, dragging Finn along with him. “Finn doesn’t want love. He wants control. To be controlled. Something I can gladly provide.”

Sami gritted his teeth as he rushed towards Hunter. “Do you even listen to yourself?!”

In a fiery blast, Sami jumped up with a scream, headbutting Hunter with all the might he could manage. Hunter stumbled back, his appearance dissolving as he turned back into his regular self. With a second frozen in time, the two of them began to fall towards the ground. As Sami landed on his shoulder with a hard _thud_ , he looked over to see Finn crumpled on the ground. Sami reached out for him, but was cut off by Hunter stabbing into the ground in an attempt to cut off Sami’s hands. “You can’t beat me here, Sami. This is my domain. This is where I thrive. Where I’ve been since the day I was born.”

“Then let Finn go, at least,” Sami said, his voice straining under pain. 

“Not a chance, buddy.”

As he stabbed at Sami’s hand, Sami screamed out in pain. He looked back at Finn, his heart feeling heavy. “Finn, wake up. Please.”

Suddenly, Finn’s eyes slowly began to open. He looked over at Sami, a blank and innocent expression at first, but then a knowing grin began to grown on his face. As he sat up, he reached his fingers under the collar. He yanked on it with a loud and decisive _**snap**_ , the leather and metal crumbling away as he stood up. Hunter turned, looking nervous. “Oh… Oh hi, Finn.”

“You were right about one thing,” Finn growled, a dark energy growing around him. “There was a tiny part of me that missed you. Missed the illusion of stability you gave me. But the rest of me? The rest of me wants you _**gone.”**_

Sami sat up, staring in awe as Finn transformed into the demonic creature he had seen before. He was large and terrifying, with his maw filled with sharp teeth and a crown of ribbon like tendrils spooling out from his head. His eyes turned white as he pointed a clawed finger at Hunter and bellowed **_“GET OUT OF MY HEAD.”_**

Hunter reeled back in fear for a moment before he steeled himself and looked over at Sami. “Fine. But I’m taking him with me!”

Sami braced himself as Hunter rushed at him, but Finn swooped in between them, crossing his arms as a bright flash filled the room.

\---

Sami felt himself skid across the floor again as he squeezed his eyes shut from the light. As he opened his eyes, he squinted to see what was going on.

He was back in the DX Theater. That much was obvious, with the rough stone of Finn’s headspace being replaced with the smooth concrete. There was Hunter in front of him, frozen mid-swing of his sword.

And between them was Finn, holding up his messenger bag to block Hunter. In fact, the light itself was coming from the bag as Hunter sliced into it. A silence fell at first, but then a slow and growing rumble as the bag split apart and exploded everywhere. A series of items rained down over the club, including clothes, receipts, a few weapons, spare change, Legos, and even Finn’s bike. Hipsters dodged out of the way as Finn dropped the remains of his bag at his feet, the sword stuck in them as items continued to fly out. With a moment’s hesitation, Finn reached for the sword, pulling it out in one fluid motion.

Sami stood up as Finn held the Power of Love over his head in awe. The sword practically sang in his hands as his wounds healed up. Even Sami could feel his hands return to normal. “Finn…”

“Sami, this is yours,” he whispered, trying to hand the sword back to Sami.

Sami just shook his head with a smile as he placed his hands over Finn’s and gently pushed the sword back towards him. “No. It’s yours now. The Power of Love? It suits you, _habibi.”_

As Finn’s face lit up with a tearful smile, Hunter scoffed. “Seriously?”

Finn and Sami turned to see Hunter looking worn out and annoyed as he yanked one of Finn’s shirts off his head. “Seriously what, Hunter,” Sami asked.

“This ‘Power of Love’ bullshit,” he spat. “Yeah, you were reunited with your _true love,_ but that’s not why you came back. You came back looking for a fight.”

Sami looked back at Finn for a second, then back at Hunter. “No. I didn’t come back for Finn, that is true. I didn’t know he was coming back at all, to be honest. But frankly, when your worst ex finds you in the woods to tell you that the guy you’re running from gives _him_ a bad feeling…”

“Your point?”

“I didn’t come back for Finn. Hell, I didn’t even really come back for you. I came back to Toronto for me. To prove to myself that fear didn’t have to be my only option for once…”

Suddenly, Sami felt a tingling sensation below his chest bone. As he exhaled his breath, a hilt of a sword laced in silver and amber emerged. Slowly, he pulled out the blade, looking at it with satisfaction. +4 to guts and +3 to smarts, if he had to guess. “Power of Self-Respect, huh?”

Hunter just rolled his eyes with a sigh as reached into his sleeve, pulling out a sword with a flash. “If you two are done being sentimental as usual, I’d like to keep this going.”

Finn and Sami looked at each other with a nod before they charged at Hunter. Sami and Finn spun and swung together as Hunter blocked and backed up towards the stage. “What do you mean ‘as usual,’” Finn asked as he thrust at Hunter.

“Oh c’mon, was it not obvious I was spying on you two,” Hunter sniped as he dodged Finn’s sword and backed against the wall. He pressed a button to his side as a mechanical whirr and gasp revealed a set of stairs ascending up to the top of the stage. “The exes, whatever _that_ thing was in Sami’s head…”

“That was him,” Finn asked, looking at Sami.

“No, it was another thing,” Sami answered. “I’ll tell you later.”

“Plus, you know how easy it is to get in Sami’s head,” Hunter asked incredulously as he swiped at Sami. He began backing up the stairs, trying his best to get the high ground on the two of them. “It’s full of Subspace, sadness and ska shows.”

“Hey,” Finn snapped as he blocked Hunter’s swipe as they followed him up. “How do you think we met, you prick? Besides, only I get to tease him about his music taste!”

“AND US,” shouted two women’s voices in unison from the back.

“Yes, Bayley and Sasha, I know!”

Hunter roared as he tried to thrust at Finn, but Sami pulled him away and blocked him, knocking the sword out of his hand and down the side of the pyramid. He stepped forward and hit Hunter with another headbutt, which caused him to stumble back onto the stage. With a glare, he grabbed at Seth and yanked him in front of him as a human shield, arm wrapped around his throat. “Not a step closer.”

“Sami,” Seth shouted as he squirmed under Hunter’s grip. “Help me!”

“Why would he bother,” Hunter said, his voice eerily calm as he leaned in close to Seth’s ear. “Sami was the first one to quit the band. He didn’t want this for you. He didn’t want everything I have given you. Can give you.”

Sami opened his mouth to speak, but Finn stepped forward first. “Don’t listen to him, Seth. He said the same to me once. He’s smart and dangerous. Everyone one in those tubes up there is a victim of his in some form or fashion. And not for nothing, he just stabbed the both of us in the chest.”

Seth looked over at Finn with wide eyes for a second before giving a small nod. Suddenly, Seth snapped his head back and hit Hunter right in the nose. Hunter let out a deep bellow of pain as he held onto his nose and stumbled back, letting go of Seth. As he did, Sami and Finn pushed forward, piercing at Hunter’s shoulders. Another yelp of pain as Hunter fell onto his knees, looking up at the two of them. “You two are real pieces of work, you know that?”

“Big talk coming from you,” Finn replied.

“You could have had it all with me,” Hunter intoned. “Money, fame, stability. Instead you choose a loser who can’t hold down a job.”

“Again, big talk coming from the guy who makes his money through ill-defined means,” Sami retorted.

“So what? You’ll survive on _love_ ,” Hunter spat, blood and coins slipping from his mouth. “It’ll never last.”

“Maybe, maybe not,” Finn mused as he turned his blade towards Hunter. He then looked over at Sami. “But I know we can figure it out together.”

Sami smiled at Finn before he looked back at Hunter. “Just like how we’re going to defeat you together.”

“What?”

Without another word between the two of them, Sami and Finn rushed forward, crossing in an x formation with their swords out in front. As they cut at Hunter with an x-strike and slid onto their knees, Hunter let out a scream that quickly turned into an echo as rays of light shone from his cuts and began to take over his body. A bright flash surrounded the stage for a few seconds, and then Hunter’s body was gone, replaced with a wave of coins that began to rain over the club. As the crowd yelped in pain, Sami looked back over at Finn. “Is it over?”

“Yeah,” Finn breathed, looking at only the remains of Hunter’s glasses on the floor. “It’s over. He can’t summon himself back. Doesn’t work like that.”

“SAMI,” Seth shouted. He ran over to Sami, engulfing him in a hug before Sami could even stand. “Oh my god, you guys saved my life.”

“And you’re not mad about it,” Sami asked, his voice peaking in confusion.

Seth just sighed and shrugged. “I guess it wasn’t what it was all cracked up to be. I mean, the money was nice, but…”

“He was a controlling dickbag,” Finn finished.

“To put it mildly, yeah. Sami, I’m sorry about everything, man.”

“It’s okay, Seth,” Sami said as he stood up and looked his friend in the eye. “I mean, you were still a dick about it.”

“I know, I know,” Seth sighed. “But you didn’t deserve to be thrown under the bus the way I did to you. I guess that’s why I told Kevin what I knew when he asked me where you were.”

Sami’s eyes grew wide at that. “But he told me that Xavier told him.”

“And Xavier did because he knew more than me,” Seth admitted. “But he called me first after he quit to see if I knew anything and I had heard some vague whisperings…”

“So you told him to talk to Xavier,” Sami muttered. “And the song?”

“It wasn’t added to the set list until Kevin texted me you were coming back home.”

“You sly motherfucker,” Finn stated as he stood up and walked over to the two of them.

“What can I say,” Seth shrugged as he walked over to his guitar and picked it up. “I may be a dick, but I have my moments. Also, my contract is dead, so I’m taking this. See ya!”

He waved at the two of them as he walked down the stairs, fancy guitar slung over his shoulder. Sami looked back at Finn for a second, suddenly feeling overwhelmed at the sight of seeing Finn in the real world again. He dropped his sword and wrapped him into a tight hug, nuzzling against his head. “How are you doing?”

“I… I don’t know,” Finn whispered against Sami’s neck. “Relieved. Tired. Paranoid. Anxious. I mostly want to get out of here right now.”

“Me too,” Sami muttered before he looked up at the ceiling to see the crystalline pods hanging over their heads. “Though I think we have some business to take care of first.”

\---

“I’m gonna kill him,” shrilled a woman’s voice by the bar as Sami grabbed his group’s drinks.

“You can’t kill him,” responded a man with a deep Southern accent. “He’s already dead, Steph.”

“I don’t care, Shawn,” the woman snapped. “He’s my ex-husband. I’ll bring him back to life, kill him again, and then sue his ass for keeping me frozen for nearly ten years!”

“Honey, he did the same to me. You see me yelling about it?”

“Can you both stop yelling about it,” Becky sighed in her thick accent, her forehead pressed against the bar. “My head is killing me.”

Sami just shook his head as he brought the tray of drinks over to his friends. “Well, all’s well that ends well, I guess.”

“I mean, sure,” Bayley said as she grabbed her vodka and coke from the tray and passed a very pink looking drink to Sasha. “Our new club only lasted one night, but that’s a small price to pay for the happiness of my best friend.”

“Yeah,” Xavier interjected as he helped pass around drinks. “Killing the final boss, releasing his prisoners, and covering his secret lair in junk and coins totally counts as a happy ending.”

“I mean, I wouldn’t say I was a _prisoner_ ,” Tyler interjected.

“Not now, Tyler,” sighed Xavier and Roman in unison. Dean just silently laughed as Tyler blushed and went back to his drink.

Sami looked back around the club, looking at all the things of Finn’s that were spread around the club. “Yeah, sorry about your bag, Finn. Also, I think I saw some hipster run off with your bike.”

“It’s okay,” Finn said with a shrug. “I’ve been meaning to get a new bag and bike anyway. I guess protecting your… a loved one from your evil bastard ex is as good of an excuse as any.”

Sami smiled a bit at that before he looked over at Brie and Nikki sitting beside each other at the bar, consoling each other in silent hugs and drinks. “You gonna talk to them?”

“At some point,” Finn said, looking over at them and his eyes casting over to Adrian chatting with Sheamus about something a few couches down. Adrian looked up and over at Finn, causing Finn to turn away embarrassed. “I think it’s wise to let everyone decompress from this right now.”

“Yeah, this whole day has been a lot,” Sami muttered as he sipped from a glass of Dr. Pepper.

“Speaking of decompression,” Sasha interrupted. “Where exactly did you go, Finn? Sami was worried sick about you for months, but you didn’t run back to Hunter.”

“Oh yeah,” Finn said as he scratched at his chin. “I just went back to my mum and da’s place in Bray.”

“Really,” Sami asked, his voice surprised.

“Yeah. Really nice place near all the good hiking spots in the area. Guess you could call it a ‘wilderness retreat’ or something.”

“Is that so,” Sasha asked, directing her head and her question at Bayley. Bayley just rolled her eyes.

“Yep, though I ended up hanging out in my pajamas all day and being sad while watching cartoons more than I did any of that. I missed being here, to be honest, but I was too stubborn and afraid to come back and admit that I was just running from my problems.”

Bayley snapped her head back towards Sasha. “Really?”

Carmella sighed as she looked up at the ceiling. “I swear, if this is the next _thing_ between you two...”

Sami just shook his head as he put his arm around Finn. “Okay, I think this is a good time to take our exit after tonight’s chaos. Good night, you guys.”

“Good night,” the group shouted in a vague unison before Enzo piped up with “Enjoy the rest of your Valentine’s Day.”

Sami felt himself get a bit embarrassed at that. He had forgotten that it was Valentine’s Day entirely. And now he found himself back with Finn. Were they even still together at this point? He didn’t even know. 

As Sami traded out his tickets for his coat and his bag, he heard the elevator ding. “Mike,” a French woman’s voice shouted as the doors opened.

“Maryse,” Miz shouted back skeptically from over by the bar.

 _“Mon pitou,”_ Maryse shouted as she ran out of the elevator. Sami watched as Maryse and her bottle blonde hair ran over to him. The two met in the middle and kissed passionately in front of where Sasha and Bayley were sitting. Bayley let out a wail of heartbreak, but the couple ignored them. Sami couldn’t help but chuckle at that.

“Well, at least someone is having a good Valentine’s Day,” Finn mused as he tried not to laugh.

“Yeah, I guess so,” Sami muttered as they walked over to the elevators together.

A silence grew between the two as they stepped onto the elevator. Sami pressed for the upper level and as the doors closed, Finn slumped over onto Sami’s chest. Sami wrapped his arms around his back and leaned his head against his. He breathed in, taking in this moment of peace in a very long and violent day. “So…”

“So what,” Finn asked, his head buried against Sami’s neck as the elevator ascended.

“So what do we do now,” Sami replied, leaning his head back against the wall of the elevator. “I mean, we never exactly had a normal relationship, but with everything that has happened…”

Finn sighed as he looked back up at Sami. “I don’t know, love. I don’t even think I know what a normal relationship is supposed to be anymore. Or maybe I never did.”

“How do you mean?”

Finn backed away from Sami, putting his back against the opposite wall and looking at the ceiling. “I mean, Hunter was right in how I’ve always wanted stability, but… I don’t know. I always felt like a river, never stopping for anything. Any time I tried to be a stone and just stop, I’d eventually get worn down and pushed by the current. Maybe because I’m scared of stopping. I’m scared that if I do, the current will leave me behind and if where I stopped wasn’t what it was cracked up to be, it would be too late to catch up. Or if the thing that stopped me saw me for what I was...”

“Well, maybe you’re looking at it the wrong way,” Sami offered.

Finn looked back at him, his face twisted in confusion. “How so?”

“I mean, we’re all just sort of floating in the current, right,” Sami asked. “And like, we all get stuck, but it doesn’t have to be that way. Sometimes you just need something to hold onto. Or a boat to navigate it.”

“Never really been good at that,” Finn replied with a slight smile. “Navigation, I mean.”

“Neither have I, but it’s not too late to try and figure that out. I mean, if you want to...”

Finn looked at Sami again, his eyes tearing up slightly. “You don’t think it’s too late for us?”

“As we were? Maybe,” Sami responded. “But it’s not too late to start over.”

“How so?”

“Like this,” Sami said. He then cleared his throat as he held his hand out to Finn. “Hi, I’m Sami Zayn. I get kind of mean when I’m upset and I’m really bad at talking about my problems to people, but I also make killer masala chai from scratch and I like my stupid grandpa hat as Bayley calls it. It’s nice to meet you.”

Finn giggled at Sami’s statement, then took his hand and shook it. “Hello, my name is Finn Bálor. I’ve dated a lot of people and moved around a lot because I’m afraid of commitment and I’ve internalized a lot of gnarly thoughts about myself, but I also love riding bikes and building Legos. Oh, and this really cute ginger from Montreal.”

“Really? He sounds like a dick to me.”

Finn giggled again as he held onto Sami’s hand. “I don’t know. I think you’ll like him once you get to know him.”

Sami laughed as he squeezed at Finn’s hand. “So… start over?”

“I’d like that, yeah,” Finn said, squeezing back with a smile.

As the elevator doors pinged open, Sami and Finn stumbled out into the dark hallway and towards the open door, their fingers intertwined as they stepped out into the cold February night. Finn shivered as he stuffed his free hand into his hoodie pocket. “Maybe I should have thought my clothing choices through before popping back over. I don’t have gloves.”

Sami looked around the street, his eyes falling on a Shopper’s on the corner. “Wait here a second?”

Finn nodded and Sami ducked into the shop. Quickly, he zipped around, grabbing the first pair of gloves and a tuque that he saw. He then stopped and found a bag of chocolate and a triangular red balloon near the register, plopping them all down in front of the bored teenager behind the counter. “So, my boyfriend is freezing outside an-”

“Whatever,” the cashier said as she began ringing up the items. Sami let out a small sigh of relief as he swiped his card. It was nice to have someone not care about his problems after months of outsiders trying to make their problems his, even if it was just a teenager at Shoppers.

As she handed Sami the bag, Sami rushed back into the night, carrying the bag in one hand and the balloon in the other. Finn looked over and began to laugh. “Oh my god…”

“Okay, it’s admittedly all last minute,” Sami admitted as he handed the bag to Finn. “As in I bought them in the last minute, but consider these your Valentine’s Day/Welcome Back to Canada gifts.”

Finn smiled as he reached into the bag, taking out the gloves and the tuque. He quickly snapped the tags off and slipped them on. He then took the balloon from Sami’s extended hand. “No, these are great. Thank you, Sami.”

“Happy Valentine’s Day, _habibi_ ,” Sami whispered as he stepped closer to Finn.

“Happy Valentine’s Day, _mo ghrá,”_ Finn whispered back before kissing Sami on the lips. Then across his cheek and his chin a few times before settling back to the lips and taking Sami’s hand in his free one.

As they walked up the street, the stream of chit chat became ever flowing, making up for the lost time over the past three months. Sami squeezed Finn’s hand as they walked to the bus stop as the fresh snow began to fall. Finn squeezed back, making Sami’s heart jump happily.

What the future was, Sami could not say, but he was happy to face it for the first time in months.

From the way it looked, maybe Finn was too.


	20. Wherever I'm With You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> April comes around again with a lot less snow, and it's time to say goodbye.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well... this is the end. I'll have more notes at the end for you.

And so February turned to March, the last strands of winter holding close to The Six. For that month, Sami tried to build his life back to the way it was months before. Get a job and find a place with Finn again. At least to get out of Bayley and Sasha’s way since their little place wasn’t meant to hold four people long term.

Finn seemed to get his job back easy enough and he was back to delivering packages in no time. It didn’t exactly surprise Sami when he came home one day to a shiny new silver bike in the living room and a new messenger bag decorated in red and black stars sitting on their mattress. It was starting to feel like the beginning of the life Sami had hoped for with Finn in between the evil exes.

So why didn’t it feel right?

\---

“Is something bothering you, love?”

Sami looked up at Finn from his spot in the window at Charlotte’s house. Being back here was kind of weird after three years of bitterness and anger between her, Bayley and Sasha, but Bayley had apparently begun to reconcile with her while Sami had run away to Calgary. Which she had not informed him of until Charlotte showed up at the house to pick up Bayley and Sasha for coffee a week after the fight with Hunter, much to Sami’s surprise. “Just thinking,” Sami said. “It feels weird to be here, y’know?”

“A bit,” Finn said as he took a swig from his beer. He then sat down next to Sami, looking over at Bayley and Sasha happily laughing with Charlotte as the rest of the party happened around them. “But I’m glad to see they’re getting along. After everything you told me about them and Seth...”

“Me too,” Sami admitted as he looked back at Finn. He thought of his life in Toronto. How it was meant to be a refuge from his broken heart and how a very long, strange and twisted path lead him to this moment, staring at the love of his life in a forgiven enemy’s house. He loved Toronto in it’s own way, and it was very much a different kind of home from the way Montreal had been.

But maybe it wasn’t the final destination. Maybe it was just a start.

“Do you want to get out of here?”

Finn looked over at Sami, a bit perplexed. “I mean, I’m not feeling this party either way and I’d like to avoid Summer awkwardly flirting with me again, so I don’t mind jetting early after I finish my beer.”

“No no,” Sami said, shaking his head and his hand. “I mean… do you want to get out of Toronto?”

Finn’s eyes went wide as he nearly spit out his drink. “What?”

“I don’t know,” Sami shrugged. “I just… I’ve spent six years here and I’ve learned a lot about myself, but I’ve realized that after everything we’ve gone through in the past year, it feels like maybe this part of my life is over and I’m just delaying beginning on the next.”

“You feel the current, huh?”

“To borrow a metaphor from you, yes,” he said, reaching out for Finn’s hand. “But I want to keep navigating with you. That hasn’t changed.”

Finn looked around the party for a few seconds, then back at Sami, leaning in close. “Where would you even want to go?”

Sami thought it over for a second. There were so many places he wanted to see. New York. Los Angeles. Tokyo. The places by the sea in Ireland that Finn described when he was homesick. Too many going through his brain at high speed to even stop and name. 

But there was only one person he wanted to see through it all.

“Anywhere,” Sami said. “As long as I’m with you.”

Finn’s cheeks started to flush as he tried to hide a bashful smile. He then looked back at Sami with a certain twinkle in his eye. “Okay. Let’s do it then.”

\---

Plans were made, remade and settled as March creeped into April and the snow began to melt off. A different kind of April from when Finn and Sami met the year before. Perhaps it was a sign.

Finn submitted his two weeks notice to Amazon, and when the last shift ended, they would be gone.

As the day creeped closer, Sami and Finn felt in a bit of a rush to get ready. Old things and furniture were given away while other boxes of non-essentials were placed into Finn’s bag for safe keeping. “Better than paying someone to move it across the world, huh,” he had asked with a grin.

By the night before, the guest room that had once been surrounded by the boxes of their old life was empty again, left only to Bayley and Sasha’s things and the old mattress. Bayley sighed as she stood in the doorway. “This better stick this time, buddy.”

“I have a good feeling about it,” Sami said as he playfully punched Bayley’s shoulder. “Besides, aren’t you and Sasha going to be happy you get this place to yourselves again?”

Bayley shrugged as she looked up at Sami. “I mean, I guess. It didn’t suck living with my best friend again, even if you were depressed for most of it.”

“Yeah, but this is your life now. I don’t need to keep stepping into it.”

“You’re welcome to anytime though. That’s what best friends are for. Plus, I bet Subspace makes that kind of thing easy.”

“I guess it does,” Sami said with a grin.

Bayley just hugged his middle as he leaned back in the doorway. “I know why you’re going, but I’m still going to miss you.”

Sami hugged Bayley back, rocking gently before kissing her on the head. “Me too, Bayley. Me too.”

\---

“Yo, why is your boyfriend running late,” Carmella asked as they sat outside Bayley and Sasha’s place.

“He not late yet,” Sami insisted as he checked his phone. “Finn just said he had to pick something up before we went on his last shift.”

“Well, he better not be late,” Sasha said jokingly. “I’ve waited five months for you to get out of my house. I ain’t taking one minute longer.”

Sami stuck his tongue out at Sasha for that. “You’re going to miss me when I’m gone.”

Sasha sighed as she leaned against Bayley in the lounge chair they were sharing. “True, I guess.”

Suddenly, the sound of a scooter began to fill the sound of their street as it got closer to their house. Sami craned his neck as he saw it roll through the street and turn into their driveway. As Sami saw who was under the helmet as the scooter came to a stop, he couldn’t help but laugh. “Finn, what the hell?”

“Don’t get your hopes up, Sami,” Finn said as he shut off the scooter. “It belongs to my replacement, but they’re letting me borrow it for the day because Amazon decided to hit me with a lot of deliveries across town, but I think it’ll be more fun than you riding around in my bag anyway.”

Sami looked over the bright red scooter with some skepticism as Finn fished a helmet out of his bag for Sami. “You ever ridden one of these before?”

“A few times, yeah,” Finn admitted as he tossed the helmet to Sami. “Don’t worry, we’ll be fine. We’ll be in Subspace most of the day anyway.”

“I guess,” Sami said as he turned the helmet over in his hands. “But before we go…”

He pointed over to Bayley, Sasha and Carmella and Finn nodded. He then turned back around and looked at all of them, his heart feeling heavy. He removed his hat and awkwardly scratched at his head. “So, I guess this is goodbye for now.”

The three of them seemed to coo as they advanced on Sami for a group hug. “Don’t be a stranger, okay,” Carmella said, sniffing a little bit.

She and Bayley broke off from Sami to give Finn a hug, leaving Sasha with Sami. She looked up at him and smiled. “You know all those things I’ve said to you were out of love, right?”

“Yes,” Sami assured, “Because that’s how you do and I wouldn’t have you any other way.”

Sasha pursed her lips, trying her best not to cry. “Take care of yourself, okay Sami?”

“You too, Sash,” Sami said, pulling her in for a hug. As they broke apart, he placed his hat on Sasha’s head with a mischievous grin. “To remember me by.”

Sasha began laughing as Bayley walked over, looking Sasha up and down. “Hey, that’s a pretty good look for you.”

“Really? I guess that says a lot about me then,” she said, composing herself again as she swapped places with Bayley.

Bayley shook her head as she looked up at Sami. “You know, I thought I’d be ready for this, but I don’t think I am.”

“You sound like my mom when I moved out, _habibti,”_ Sami teased.

“Maybe,” she admitted, cradling the back of her neck in her hands. “Just… remember what I said to you when you carried me back to my place the night we first met?”

“Like it was yesterday,” Sami chuckled. “Bayley Rose-Martinez, in all her drunken glory, shouted in the middle of Dundas Square ‘You are the only man I will ever love!’”

Bayley blushed slightly at that as she laughed and looked back at Sami. “Yeah, well, it’s still true. A mess like me couldn’t have asked for a better best friend than you.”

“I could say the exact same thing, Bayles.”

The two embraced in a hug, holding onto each other for a long and silent moment, unsure of when they’d see each other again. “Text me when you get there? Or something?”

“You got it.”

They broke apart, giving each other bittersweet looks before Sami looked back at Finn. “You all set, babe?”

“Ready when you are,” Finn replied as he climbed back on the scooter.

As he started the engine, Sami took a deep breath. He then put the helmet on, strapping it on tight before he walked over and straddled the back of the scooter. He held close to Finn, nodding onto his shoulder. “Okay… let’s do this.”

“HEY,” Bayley shouted. As Finn looked up, she pointed at him. “If you wreck him in any way, I’ll find you.”

“Don’t worry, Bayley,” he replied with a grin. “If I’m not careful, I’ll be the first to give you my location.”

Sami smiled at that as Finn revved the scooter and began to turn around back towards the street. As they peeled out towards the street, Sami looked back over at the three of them and waved one last time before they disappeared out of sight. He sniffed and squeezed his eyes before turning back towards Finn’s head. “Where to first?”

“Somewhere close by, actually.”

\---

Finn knocked on the door to Xavier’s house as Sami leaned next to him. “Never thought I’d be back here today.”

“Serendipity is a thing,” Finn said as he awkwardly balanced the box in his hand.

“How much serendipity is on this route,” Sami asked, eyebrow raised.

Finn just grinned. “Hey, let me stay mysterious about a few things, love.”

Sami rolled his eyes playfully as he heard someone approach the door. “If you insist.”

The door opened and the two stood up straight, expecting Xavier. Instead, the two nearly jumped back in shock as a tall man with curly hair dyed silver in a black tank top answered the door. “KENNY,” the two of them shouted in near unison. 

They looked at each other with surprise before looking back at the man named Kenny, who looked just as surprised to see them. “Finn? Sami? What the fuck? Is this some joke? Do you two know each other?”

“Finn and Sami are here,” shouted Xavier from the kitchen. A split second later, he was running towards the door and wedging himself in between it and Kenny. “Oh my god, I thought you guys were leaving town today.”

“We are,” Finn stated, his voice still confused. “Like, after my shift. I… I need you to sign for this…”

“Oh right, of course,” Xavier said as he took the package and slip from Finn, scribbling his signature onto it. “So do you guys already know Kenny? It sounds like he knows the both of you.”

“Oh, we do,” Kenny said, placing his arm around Xavier’s shoulders as he looked at the two of them. _“Intimately.”_

Sami just pursed his lips as he grabbed at Finn’s waist and pulled him close. “I guess you could say that.”

Xavier seemed oblivious as he passed the clipboard back to Finn. “Well, let me get one last hug before you guys leave.”

The two separated and wrapped their arms around Xavier, ignoring the awkwardness with Kenny for a second as they did. As they separated, Sami looked at Xavier. “You happy, man?”

Xavier looked back at Kenny with a smile and a small grin seemed to break across Kenny’s face. “Never better.”

With a couple of final goodbyes, Xavier closed the door. Finn and Sami practically snapped their necks to look at each other. “Okay, Finn, how the fuck do you know my fight camp boyfriend?”

“We dated for a few months when I lived in Japan,” Finn admitted, his voice faster than usual in its confusion. “You dated him at camp though?!”

“We were like teenagers,” Sami sighed. “Like I knew him before I knew Kevin.” He then started laughing as he covered his face in embarrassment. “God, how awkward would that have been if he had been an ex?”

“The most,” Finn said as joined in the laugh. “Luckily we don’t have to think about that anymore, but this might still keep me up at night.”

Sami shook his head as they began to walk back to the scooter. “Where to next, then?”

“Yorkville,” Finn said as he looked at his clipboard. “Luckily not to Tyler’s place though.”

\---

“Ugh, where did you uggos come from?”

Finn groaned as he removed his helmet. “Hi Tyler.”

Sami looked over from their parked spot in front of Hemingway’s to see Tyler walking up to them, a muscled brunette man on his arm. Tyler lifted his sunglasses, sneering. “I thought I heard that you two losers were leaving town.”

“Later today,” Sami replied as he took his helmet off. “I thought you were heading off to Ibiza or something?”

“I am,” Tyler said, dropping his sunglasses back down. “But not for another few days, due to some unfortunate hangups with the residence me and Dango are renting.”

Finn paused from fishing a package out of his bag to look up at Tyler. “I’m sorry… Dango?”

“That’s me. I’m Dango,” the brunette piped up, his voice breathy. He then tried to pose seductively while hanging onto Tyler. “It’s short for… Fandango.”

Finn just blinked as he looked at Sami, then back at Tyler. “Fandango?”

“That’s right,” Fandango nodded.

“We met at the Halloween party,” Tyler said with fondness as he looked at Fandango. “Hit it off right away. We just get each other, you know?”

Sami looked over at Finn before kissing him on the back of his head. “Yeah, I know. I’m happy for you, Tyler. Truly. I hope Ibiza is wonderful.”

Tyler’s mouth twitched a bit into a smile as he tugged at Fandango’s sleeve and began walking down the street. “Bye uggos. Enjoy… whatever it is you’re doing.”

Finn shook his head as they watched the two walk away. “You think Fandango is even his real name?”

“Really, _Fergal,”_ Sami asked sarcastically.

“Question withdrawn,” Finn said as he hopped off the scooter and walked into the bar. Sami followed behind as Finn looked in the downstairs before shouting that he had a delivery.

“Oi, I’ll take it,” shouted an Irish voice from behind the bar.

“Sheamus,” Finn responded, his voice surprised. Sami jumped back a little as Finn moved forward towards the bar. “You still in town after all of that?”

“Yeah, well, it sounded like a better option than going home,” Sheamus boomed as Finn handed the package and the clipboard over to him. “And hey, no hard feelings.”

“About what?”

“The whole evil ex thing,” Sheamus said, looking over at Sami as well. “You know, my head was getting messed with and it really was years ago. I’m over it now. So sorry about all of that.”

“It’s… cool,” Sami replied, feeling very confused. “Though I’m more surprised you’re working in a Kiwi bar.”

“A job’s a job, fella,” Sheamus shrugged. “Be seeing you two!”

“See ya,” Finn waved as he walked out and grabbed Sami by the hand.

“Wasn’t expecting that,” Sami muttered as he followed out behind Finn.

“Neither was I, to be honest. I think today might have more serendipity than I thought.”

“Like the universe knows that we’re leaving?”

“God, it would though,” Finn mumbled as he picked up his helmet and began to strap it on.

\---

Finn tapped his foot against the tile of the fancy apartment building lobby in Yorkville. Sami remembered how Finn told him once that apartment deliveries were his least favorite because it was usually a lot of packages at once and the security guys checking them in would take forever. “You gonna be okay,” Sami whispered as he leaned against the counter.

“Yeah,” Finn sighed. “Just impatient.”

“Finn?”

Finn froze in place for a second at the low voice that greeted him. Sami turned and saw Brie Bella looking at him, a french bulldog in her arms. She looked just as surprised to see Finn as Finn was to hear her. Slowly, Finn turned and looked back at her. “Hey Brie…”

“Hey,” she whispered, looking away from him awkwardly.

A silence grew for a few seconds before Finn cleared his throat. “Look, Brie, I wanted to apo-”

“You don’t have to,” Brie interrupted, trying her best not to look at Finn as she petted the dog in her arm. “Nikki and I found out everything after. It wasn’t your fault. You don’t have to apologize.”

“I want to though,” Finn said softly as he walked closer to her. “It still wasn’t right and I hate knowing I caused you and Nikki any pain.”

Brie looked up at Finn with a sad smile as her dog tried to lean up and lick her face. “I’ll let Nikki know you said that, okay?”

The two shared a one armed hug for a few seconds before Brie broke off, looking over at Sami. “You know, your band is pretty good. I just thought you should know that.”

“Thanks,” Sami replied, feeling slightly embarrassed. “We actually broke up after that gig. I guess that was our peak.”

“That’s too bad,” Brie said with a frown. “Let me know if you guys ever get back together.”

She then waved at the two of them before walking back to the elevators of the apartment. Finn groaned and ran his hands over his face.

“Sir? We’re done here,” the security guard said as he placed the clipboard on the counter.

“We are,” Finn said distantly as he swiped it from the counter without a second look. He then began to walk out, hiding his face.

Sami followed behind him as he walked up the scooter. “Hey, _habibi._ Are you okay?”

“I don’t know,” Finn cried, dabbing at his face with his fingers. “I thought I would be if I got to apologize to Brie, but…”

Sami shushed him as he pulled him in close for a hug and rested his head on his shoulder. “Hey, it’s okay. You’ve done all you could with Brie and Nikki.”

“I wish I could do more,” Finn breathed as he buried his head into Sami’s chest.

“I know, I know,” Sami sighed as he rubbed at Finn’s back. “I think the only thing that could fix this entirely is going back in time to stab Hunter in the face before he did all of that, but we can’t do that, so we gotta keep moving forward.”

Finn sniffed as he nodded against Sami’s chest before looking back up at him. “Right… right…”

“Still a little too much serendipity than you were hoping?”

“Yeah.”

“Then let’s go get lunch then.”

“Okay,” Finn breathed as he went over his eyes with one final swipe. “Let’s go to Queen. I got one delivery there, but we can do what we want after.”

“Sounds good,” Sami said as he picked the helmets off the scooter, handing one off to Finn.

\---

“Whatcha lookin’ at, Sami,” Finn asked as he finished his delivery in the Much Digital Offices.

“That,” Sami said, pointing at a large TV in the lobby. On the screen, a recent performance by The Foreign Objects was playing, with Adrian back on bass. Instead of Kevin playing guitar on screen though, it was Seth to the other side of Adrian, bouncing around on stage and making faces at Paige. Sami couldn’t help but smile some at that. “Well, I guess Seth made it.”

“I guess he did,” Finn sighed as the camera swung back to Adrian. Sami gently caressed at Finn’s arm as he watched his ex on screen. “Hunter was good for someone after all.”

“Sure, he was a mind controlling narcissist, but he really drove people together with his terribleness.”

“How so?”

“Well, you moved here, didn’t you?”

Finn looked at Sami with a smile and a kiss before taking his hand. “C’mon. Let’s go eat.”

\---

Sami rested his head on Finn’s shoulder as Subspace blew past them on the scooter. The air was cold and the scooter fell quiet as they sped along the glowing road within it.

This wasn’t so scary anymore. After a year’s worth of falling and bobbing in and out of Subspace for various reasons, Sami was practically used to it. Maybe he could even get Finn to show him how to properly navigate it.

He squeezed around Finn’s middle. There were times this didn’t feel real. That falling back into their relationship had come so naturally. Not to say that there hadn’t been hiccups and work, but he guessed that’s what growing up was. That sometimes you could find that person who was willing to work with you. Who matched your wavelengths.

Sami loved Finn for all the things he was. And he didn’t have any doubt in his heart when he could say that Finn felt the same.

It felt nice.

“Hold on,” Finn shouted over the wind as he sped forward towards a door. 

Sami pressed his face into Finn’s back as they blasted out into the street, bright daylight searing at Sami’s closed eyes. He looked up squinting as they pulled in front of the Second Cup on St. Clair where Enzo and Cass worked. “Delivery here?”

“No, I just want one last Americano made by Cass,” Finn admitted as he turned off the scooter and took his helmet off. “Don’t you?”

“Caramel Coretto,” Sami corrected as he took his helmet off. “But yes, I would like that.”

As the stepped off the scooter and walked in, they were greeted with a loud and enthusiastic “HEY!” from Enzo. “You two lovebirds haven’t left yet?!”

“Soon,” Finn answered as he combed out the hair on top of his head with his fingers. “We just needed a coffee break before we do.”

“Well then, you looking for your usuals?”

“You know it.”

“Me and Cass will get right on that then,” Enzo said as he punched in their order. Finn then tried to hand over his card when Enzo shook his head and pulled out his own wallet. “Don’t worry, kids. This one is on me.”

“Enzo, you don’t have to,” Sami insisted.

Enzo shrugged as he waved Sami off. “I don’t have to do anything, Zayn. However, I want to do this. As a token of appreciation for my two favorite customers.”

“I bet you say that to everyone,” Finn purred.

“He does,” Cass interjected without looking up from the coffee he was pouring.

“Yeah, well, I actually mean it for them,” Enzo snapped. He then looked back at Sami and Finn. “Seriously though. This one’s on me, kids.”

Finn watched as Enzo shuffled off and joined Cass on working on drinks. He looked back at Sami, then looked over at the tip jar. “You thinking what I’m thinking?”

“I have a 20 in my wallet.”

Finn smiled as he pulled his wallet out and bucked a knuckle under Sami’s chin. “Good man.”

Quietly, they slipped bill notes into the tip jar, the green and red mingling together. They then walked over to the opposite counter to pick up their drinks, quietly thanking Cass before going to sit down as he turned to another customer. “You think he’ll notice,” Sami whispered.

“I just want to let it sit,” Finn whispered back. “Our last gift to our favorite coffee shop.”

“Sounds good to me.”

Sami then kissed Finn on the head before they picked a window seat and watched as Hillcrest bustled by them, letting the noises of the shop and Enzo yelling about the tip jar fade into the background.

\---

“Last stop of the day,” Finn declared as he brought the scooter to a stop further into the Wychwood area.

Sami looked up as he took his helmet off, feeling a bit of surprise. “Roman and Dean’s house.”

“Yeah, it looks like Roman ordered something,” Finn muttered as he reached into the bag and fished out an Amazon box and his clipboard. “This is what I actually meant by serendipity today. I figured this would be the perfect opportunity…”

“I appreciate it, love,” Sami said as he kissed Finn on the cheek. They then walked up to the front door, hearing live music being practiced behind the door. As they knocked, the music came to a slow and staticky stop.

A few seconds later, Dean and Roman walked up to the door, looking a bit sweaty. “Hey boys,” Roman said with a smile as he began to pull his hair back. “What brings you to our humble home?”

“Delivery, actually,” Finn responded as he held the package and clipboard out to Roman. “Though, this might be the last time you see us for a while.”

“Really,” Dean asked, looking over at Sami.

“Yeah, we’re actually leaving Toronto tonight,” Sami answered. “After this package, actually.”

“Well good for you guys,” Dean chirped as he reached out to hug Sami. “You deserve happiness, my brother.”

Sami felt himself get slightly flustered with Dean’s hug. “Thanks. I’m really going to miss you guys.”

“Us too,” Roman sighed as he brought in Sami for a hug. “Though, I have to say Shatterband is coming along quite nicely.”

Finn raised an eyebrow. “Shatterband?”

Dean shrugged. “It’s a work in progress.”

“Told you the name was dumb,” Roman muttered.

“You say a lot of things, babe, alright?”

Sami raised an eyebrow at Dean’s use of the word ‘babe,’ but before he could ask, Roman just shook his head and kissed Dean on the cheek. “And you never listen.”

“Did you guys finally hook up,” Sami blurted out.

The two of them looked over at Sami in shock. “What do you mean finally,” Dean asked.

“Uhhhh… wegottagonow,” Sami sputtered as he grabbed Finn’s arm and ran off the porch. “Bye! I love you both!”

Dean groaned as he shut the door behind them. Finn just turned and looked at Sami. “What the fuck was that?”

Sami ran his hand over his face, trying his best to make his blush go away. “I’ll explain later.”

\---

“They on their way,” Sami asked, as they sat outside of Hillcrest Park.

“Soon. We should be seeing them in a f-”

“NOW,” a feminine voice shouted behind them. As Sami and Finn jumped, the voice giggled. “Got you both.”

Sami turned around to see Becky standing in front of them, her orange hair braided into an ombre strand turning yellow and a orange and purple purse slung over her shoulder. He smiled as he reached his arms out for a hug. “Becky, I’m so happy to see you!”

“Whoa, I should try killing boys more often if I get greeted like this,” Becky laughed as she hugged Sami back.

“You left a pretty good impression, I think,” Finn retorted as he joined in to hug her as well.

“So you’re Finn’s replacement, huh,” questioned Sami.

“Yep. Came highly recommended too, according to his boss,” Becky stated with her hands on her hips. “I guess you can say that I _deliver.”_

Finn groaned and ran his hand over his face. “There’s the Becky I know.”

“Yeah, no more of this Hunter trying to get in my head crap.”

Sami looked back over at Finn. “Hey, do you have that thing in easy access?”

“Way ahead of you,” Finn stated as he dug into his bag, fishing around for something in the great expanse of it. Finally, he pulled out a katana with steampunk charms threaded through the pommel. 

Becky gasped as she took it from Finn. “You saved my sword?”

Finn nodded towards Sami. “Well, Sami did. He insisted. He knew you’d be coming back from this.”

Becky turned back towards Sami with a cheesy grin, tapping him on the shoulder with her fist. “You’re a good man, Sami Zayn. I can’t even begin to thank you.”

“It was my pleasure.”

“Hey, Becky,” Finn said softly as he handed the helmets over to her. As she slipped them and her sword into her bag, he cleared this throat. “Look, I’m sorry about everything. I really failed you along the way and you honestly deserved better than that.”

Becky shushed him as she cradled his face in her hands. “Fergal, dearheart, I appreciate it, but you don’t have to apologize to me anymore.”

“I mean, I want to,” he said.

“And like I said, I appreciate it, but I’ve had a lot of time to think about and I want to move on with my life. You’re already getting there, so I’m gonna to do it in my own way too. Of course, that includes buying a scooter.”

Finn giggled as he wrapped Becky in another hug. “Still friends though?”

“Forever and always, Ferg.”

As she broke apart from Finn, she turned to Sami. “You two take care of each other, okay?” She then grabbed their wrists and pulled them closer together to join hands. “Work in all the ways me and Fergal didn’t. You both deserve that.”

“Are you giving us a blessing,” Sami asked, feeling only slightly confused.

Becky shrugged as she reached into her bag and pulled out one of the helmets, strapping it onto her head. “My mum always calls me a witch. I guess I’m just leaning into it.” As she stepped onto the scooter and started it up, she turned to look at Sami and Finn one last time. “See you in Subspace, boys.”

And with that, Becky sped off down the street as Sami and Finn waved. As she disappeared, Sami turned to Finn. “So… I guess that’s it, huh?”

“Almost,” said Finn as he looked up the hill of the park. “We’re at the place we had our first date at. I say we take a few minutes on the swings.”

Sami took Finn’s hand as they walked into the park. “No argument from me.”

In silence, they walked up the hill as the sun began to set. Sami remembered how deep the snow was when they came here for their date, a sharp contrast to now with the warm weather and early spring greenery. “You know, when I first move to Toronto, I lived near High Park in a shitty apartment with two guys who couldn’t stand each other and a neighbor who might have actually been a murderer or something. And I went out one day when it was actually warm out and walked to the park to see the most beautiful cherry blossom bloom I have ever seen in my life. And after living in the cold winter for several months after breaking up with Kevin, it felt like things could be okay again.”

“And how do you feel now,” Finn asked as they walked over to the swings, brushing some leaves and dust off the seats.

“Kinda sad to leave,” Sami admitted as he sat down on the swing. “Kinda scared, but in a good way. Not in the way I felt when I left Montreal after everything with Kevin. An excited way.”

Finn sat down in the swing next to him, swinging gently from side to side. “You know, I say this is a vast improvement from a year ago.”

“How so,” Sami asked as he looked over at Finn.

“Well, for one, the weather is beautiful. Two, we’re actually talking to each other about things.”

Sami chuckled. “I was so afraid you were going to run away if you saw how messed up I was that night.”

“I think I was too,” Finn sighed as he looked up at the metal bar above them. “I had just managed to escape Hunter not too long before when you asked me out. I nearly crapped out too just because I wasn’t sure how you would be.”

“Seriously? What made you go through with it then?”

Finn blushed as he looked down at his lap, then over at Sami. “The way you looked at me when you opened the door. I replayed it in my head over and over again and I guess I knew you were worth a shot. It gave me courage to walk out the door.”

Sami looked down at his lap, feeling a blush of his own grow across his cheeks as his heart sped up. He really wasn’t prepared for that. “So… any regrets since then?”

“Yeah,” Finn responded. “I never should have walked out on you.”

Sami looked over at Finn, then grabbed him by the hand. Finn looked down at their hands, then back at Sami. “We have time to make up for it,” Sami assured.

Finn smiled softly as he looked at the horizon of the park, then back at Sami. “Want to see who can swing the highest?”

Sami smirked, remembering the night of their first date. “I never thought you’d ask.”

With a slow creak of the metal, the two began to swing. Slow and steady, then building momentum as their arcs grew wide. As the warm air sped past Sami’s face, he felt his heart and his stomach turn to butterflies with each moment of suspended gravity. He remembered that dark and snowy night on the swings, wishing he could show himself then what he had now.

“I’m higher,” Finn taunted gleefully.

“Not this time, buddy,” Sami shouted back as he pushed himself to match Finn’s height. At the top of the arc, Sami released himself from the swing, flying gracefully down to the ground with only a slight lurch forward. “Finally stuck the landing!”

“Woo hoo,” Finn cheered as he swung back in a high arc before swinging forward and landing on the ground with a smooth and steady landing. He then looked up at Sami with a grin. “Did I look cool?”

“I guess,” Sami sighed playfully as he leaned forward towards Finn. “But not as cool as me.”

Finn giggled again before kissing Sami. Chaste at first, but then slow and passionately in the middle of the park as a breeze rolled by. As they broke apart, Sami could see the white door with a single black star in the middle appear in his periphery. “I guess it’s time, huh?”

“Well, there's one last thing,” Finn admitted as he opened his bag once more, fishing through it. He then pulled out a bright green bag from Kind Exchange, which Finn had ducked into while they were waiting on a seat for lunch. He handed it to Sami. “Since you gave your old one to Sasha…”

Sami laughed as he pulled a dark grey flat bill cap out of the bag. “A new grandpa hat.”

“Because I always liked it,” Finn replied.

Sami smiled as he fixed the cap to the top of his head. It fit perfectly, of course. Like Cinderella, but with hats and Sami already being committed to the prince. “Thank you, _habibi.”_

“Any time, _mo ghrá,_ ” Finn responded as he took Sami’s hand. “You ready?”

Sami looked towards the door and squeezed Finn’s hand. “As I’ll ever be.”

“You can always back out now, you know?”

“You just bought me a hat. It’s fucking serious now.”

Finn laughed at that, and Sami did too. They walked closer to the door and Finn opened it slowly, showing the infinity of Subspace before them. “To the future?”

“And everything after,” Sami replied, kissing Finn’s hand.

With a final nod to each other, the two then stepped forward through the door, letting themselves fall through as the door behind them slammed shut and the lights of Subspace rushed past them on the way down.

Together, it felt like floating.

**The End**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In all of my years of writing fan fiction, I never finished an ongoing multichaptered fic until now. This fun little AU I cast in the shoe department of a shitty alternative retail job soon became a personal challenge of being able to see something through the end. Because of it, I became a better planner and I made amazing friends too. I was able to heal some from the broken heart I had experienced before I got into wrestling.
> 
> Thank you to Missy, iggypup87 and archaicbro for being my biggest cheerleaders/betas.
> 
> Thank you to [dahdeemon](http://misskittyfantastico.tumblr.com/post/149710031076), [archaicbro,](http://enbogger.tumblr.com/post/147046442523/sami-zayn-vs-the-world-misskittyfantastico-on) [subtlelikeaseabrook](http://subtlelikeseabrook.com/post/147084519334/theres-so-much-i-need-to-fix-but-this-is-for) ([twice!](http://subtlelikeseabrook.com/post/148529784894/for-misskittyfantastico-heres-carmella)) and [moranov](http://moranov.tumblr.com/post/153082531232/ive-been-reading-this-fanfiction-about-finn-b%C3%A1lor) for creating beautiful fanart that caught me by surprise and would make me geek out for days on end.
> 
> Thank you to the Sami/Finn fandom for being so encouraging and being the best. You're a bunch of stone cold weirdoes and I am so proud of all of you.
> 
> Thank you to Bryan Lee O'Malley for creating the universe of _Scott Pilgrim._ Sorry not sorry for infusing it with wrestlers and instances of sex.
> 
> I'm not done with this universe yet. There will be more side stories in the [Sami Zayn's Full Color Odds and Ends series,](http://archiveofourown.org/series/576676) including how Dean and Roman and Xavier and Kenny got together and a missing scene of Finn and Sami the morning after the fight with Hunter. [The playlist will also stay up as well.](https://play.spotify.com/user/misskittyf/playlist/0p11eK0F5wngmToaqh6Rp5) However, linearly, Sami and Finn's story here is done. Thank you for following along with me through all of this and I hope I did you proud.
> 
> Lesbians to you all,
> 
> MissKittyFantastico


End file.
